Melody of a Broken Memory
by Arigatou Sheitarou
Summary: AU. Nanoha is dragged to a boarding school against her wishes. There, she has her first meeting with the beautiful and elusive violinist, Fate Testarossa. She is immediately smitten by curiosity, and confused by the cold aura that surrounds her.FateNanoha
1. Prologue

**Melody of a Broken Memory**

_**A/N: **__Well, this is...my first attempt at an AU fic. It's not my best first chapter, because I'm not really any good with introductions, but give it a chance until the second chapter. It will get better, most definitely, since I have a PLOT! Mwuahahahaha! ...AHEM, anyways, read and enjoy. I will need reviews on this, because I'm not sure if I'm doing it right and if the image in my head came out right. So please. Review. And the pairing is NanohaXFate, as always. Because I simply can't stand Ferret Boy and Nanoha together. And the characters from A's will appear too. Next chapter. If anyone wants to request a pairing, let me know._

**First Edit **(19/03/09): I barely changed anything. Just a few stupid mistakes. XD So yeah. Don't be alarmed or anything.

"_I wanted you to know…that I love the way you laugh…"_

Her insides continually flipped over as she walked ever closer to the gates. The looming building seemed less and less inviting with every step, even if there was beauty in the nature surrounding it. She had half a mind to turn back and run away. But that wasn't what she was expected to do. She was expected to show up to at the boarding school like the good little angel she was and take her classes for the rest of her high school years.

Sadly, this good little angel felt mutinous.

Which was why she was reluctant to take another step once having gone through the gates.

Now that she was inside, she noticed two other buildings a ways off the central one. She supposed those were the dorms, though she couldn't be too sure. Her heart flipped again. She took a deep breath and made reluctant way across the path towards the central building. Pretty soon she was out of breath and cursing the people who had the audacity to build a boarding school at the top of a mountain.

Another gate was visible through the foliage, and she hurried towards the end of the path, eager to get everything over with. Once she stepped through, her breath was taken away.

In the center of the small square, there was hardly a tree in sight. A single fountain stood in the center, emphasizing the impact of the school's looming building. Her parents had said this was the best boarding school in the country. They had probably been right. The air about the school inspired seriousness and dedication, and at once she straightened her posture, her eyes flickering from side to side nervously.

Classes were obviously currently in session, or she would have seen the students walking around the school grounds. With that in mind, she realized she was late and mentally berated herself for being so slow. She set off immediately up the stone steps of the main building and opened the door, panting as she heaved her heavy bags up the stairs after her.

The lobby was probably the most sophisticated place she had ever seen, but she had no time to sit and gawk as a strict looking woman marched rigidly towards her.

"The new transfer, I presume?" She asked, her voice as dry as the rest of her seemed. Without waiting for a response, she stated, "You're late."

She bowed her head.

"I'm sorry. I didn't realize-"

"No excuses. I will let you off with a warning since it is your first day. We do not tolerate tardiness Miss…" The woman raised an eyebrow at her.

"Takamachi…Takamachi Nanoha."

"Well, Miss Takamachi, I expect you to adapt quickly, for if you do not, you will be expelled, no doubt." Nanoha was beginning to like this lady less and less. "I, myself, would be in charge of that task. I am this school's dean, Takamachi. Do you know what my name is?"

"N-no…"

"Have you read the papers sent to you by the school's administration?"

"…No, I haven't."

"I would advise you to do that. Take them out, Miss Takamachi, and get to your first class."

"But I don't know my schedule, or my way around the school."

"Find your way. One must always be ready to do things by themselves. If you cannot do something as simple as this by yourself, you will surely fail in this school. Leave your bags here. They will be taken to your room."

And with that, the woman stalked off without a second glance. Utterly disoriented, Nanoha took out her papers and clutched them in her hands, praying that something would happen and they would lead her the right way. But of course, nothing happened and she stared blankly at her first class.

_Lindy Harlaown_

_English_

_Third Floor, Room 38_

She sighed and set up the stairs, her heart heavy. She already had such an intense dislike for the school it wasn't funny. Once at the third floor, it was only a matter of picking from three different corridors. She chose the one to her right.

_35…_

The classroom was full of people, but there was a respectful silence as the teacher continued his lectures.

_36…_

Much like its predecessor, this room was also full of students, and Nanoha quickly walked past it, her stomach again doing nervous flips.

_37…_

This room was full of laughter, and as she passed through the open door, she spotted the teacher in the midst of demonstrating something to her students with a smile on her face.

_38…_

And she stopped in front of the door, her mouth dry, and her legs feeling like lead. With a trembling hand, she tapped on the doorway.

The young teacher stopped mid explanation and turned to her, as did the rest of the class.

"And who might you be?" She asked in an amused tone.

Nanoha swallowed and began, "I'm the new transfer…Takamachi Nanoha. N-nice to meet you."

The teacher smirked and suddenly struck out with her chalk. Nanoha pressed herself against the wall, hands up high, eyes wide as the teacher pressed the piece of chalk to her throat.

"_Are you responsible, Miss Takamachi? We do not tolerate tardiness." _There was something familiar about the way she said it.

The students began laughing quietly in their seats. The teacher then turned on them all.

"_Didn't I say you couldn't laugh, joke, speak, or breathe?"_

At this, the students began laughing harder, and Nanoha suddenly realized why. She began giggling quietly and slowly eased off the wall. The teacher smiled at her and stretched out her hand.

As Nanoha shook it, she said, "Is that woman always like that?"

"Sadly, yes. Akito-sama is a very…strict person. You make sure not to get on her bad side, even though we make fun of her." She said, "I'm Lindy Harlaown. It's nice to meet you, Nanoha-san."

"Same here, Harlaown-sensei."

Lindy walked over to her desk and handed her a few papers.

"Take these and fill them out. After you do, give them back to me and I'll assign your roommate. For now, take the seat beside Yuuno-kun."

Nanoha held the papers gingerly in her hands as she turned to face the only empty seat there was beside a shy looking boy with long blonde hair and green eyes. She smiled at him, and was amused to see a blush beginning to form on his cheeks. Taking her seat, she turned her attention to the papers and began filling them out as the teacher resumed her lesson.

For a moment, she paused. A peculiar sense of foreboding stole itself around her heart.

Almost as if _something _would happen.

She shook her head, and continued filling out the papers.

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Later that day would find her tired, panting, and out of breath as she ran up the stairs up to the fourth and last floor, trying to find the music classroom. It was set apart from the rest of the classrooms, as the noise would probably prove itself a distraction for the other classes. She rounded a corner and stopped at the only classroom on that floor. Walking inside, she spotted the boy she had met that morning, Yuuno Scrya.

"Takamachi-san." He greeted her, motioning towards the seat beside him.

In his hands, he held a flute. Nanoha was suddenly painfully aware that she did not have an instrument with her. Not that she could bring her instrument either way, but…

"Yuuno-kun." She said, brimming with false cheer.

"Tough first day?"

Nanoha immediately deflated onto her desk.

"I have an intense dislike for our dean…" She moaned, banging her head on the desk. "I'm on her hit list…"

"Everyone's on her hit list." A new voice came.

Nanoha raised her head to look at a handsome boy she had seen a few times around the hall.

"I'm Chrono Harlaown." He said, taking the seat in front of her. Turning to Yuuno, he said, "You're still helping me with that project, right, Yuuno?"

Yuuno nodded at the question.

"We should show Takamachi-san around after class first, though, since she's new."

Chrono smirked.

"Oh yes. Since she's new."

Nanoha wrinkled her brow in confusion. Was Chrono implying something?

Unfortunately, their conversation was disrupted before she could ask. The teacher walked inside and introduced himself as their music instructor.

"I believe we will have a very interesting year, due to the competition this year." He said. "So, anyone here that can play an instrument?"

Nanoha and Yuuno were one of the very few who raised their hands.

"Good. Scrya-kun, what do you play?"

"The flute, Kubo-sensei."

"And you, girl. State your name and weapon!"

Nanoha felt a smile tug at her lips.

"Takamachi Nanoha and I play the piano."

Kubo rubbed his chin in concentration.

"Piano, you say?" He said, "Are you any good?"

Nanoha fidgeted in her seat.

"I've been playing for a while…" She answered, uncomfortable with the question.

"Okay, show me what you can do." He said, and pointed at the piano at the end of the classroom. "There's already a score there, although it may be a bit difficult for you. But try it, and let's see how well you do."

Nanoha gaped at him.

"Sensei?"

"Go, shoo. Play. We're here to have fun in this class." He motioned to the piano.

Nanoha sighed and stood up. She sat down on the stool, and passed her fingers through the keys. She peered at the score, and after a moment, began to play.

She was completely swept away by the feelings within the melody, her fingers suddenly moving of their own accord, her eyes diligently reading the score while her mind was elsewhere. Her mind with her heart, exploring the nostalgia within the melody, the melancholy that seemed to sweep within her heart and take her someplace else. And suddenly, the score was finished, and the melody was complete.

But the emotion was not gone. She was suddenly nostalgic, but of what, she did not know. And the feeling of foreboding was stronger than ever.

"That was very good, Nanoha-chan…Very good…"

The classroom was suddenly very quiet, but Nanoha only had thoughts for a question. She turned to the teacher, who sat on his desk, watching her with pensive eyes.

"Who wrote this? I've never heard this melody before."

It felt urgent to know who had written it. She _needed_ to know.

"That score…was written by one of my students…"

"By a student?" Yuuno asked, "But that score was…"

Kubo nodded his head.

"A musical genius. She arrived at the school a few years back. I was surprised at her talent, and awed by her capability to listen to a melody once and be able to play it immediately without making a mistake. I'm surprised, though, that she would choose to skip my class today…"

"She's in this class?" Nanoha asked, curiously.

Kubo nodded and looked at the scores in silence. For a moment, Nanoha thought she had seen a flicker of intense sorrow as he stared at the scores, but then it was gone, and she ruled it off as her imagination.

"Her name is Fate Testarossa…"

"Fate…" Nanoha repeated.

It was almost familiar.

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After the class ended, Nanoha slumped in her seat, glad that her first day was finally over. The sun was setting gently on the horizon, and the evening glow began to intensify as the day wore on. She watched as the classroom emptied except for Yuuno, Chrono, and herself.

"Are you going to come?" Yuuno asked her.

"I want to take another look at the score if you don't mind. I can catch up later." She answered, moving towards the piano.

"Okay, but remember that dinner is at 7:00 for us."

"Right." She nodded.

As they exited the classroom, Nanoha sunk back slowly into her seat. She stared at her desk, something gnawing at her chest. She wanted to be alone for a while, to ponder what had happened during the day. She felt lonely at the school, and nervous for some reason. She sighed and picked up her stuff.

There was no denying it. She had been nothing but a nervous wreck that whole day.

She left the classroom, about to go back down the stairs to find her dorm room, when something caught her attention.

A sorrowful melody, jagged and raw in its pain. She dropped her things to the floor and her legs moved without her consent. She walked up the steps beside the classroom, up to a door that opened out to the roof. The melody wafted through the crack of the slightly open door and she approached it cautiously, in a trance-like state. With her hand, she pushed it farther open, and her breath was torn from her throat.

A girl as beautiful the melody she played stood in the very center of the roof, the evening light making her seem to glow. She stood in a perfect poise, holding the violin in her hands as she played, her eyes closed as she lost herself in the passion of her instrument and the melody she had chosen. Long, silky blonde hair was tied back in a black ribbon. She seemed lost in her music.

Nanoha trembled.

_Beautiful…_

And she knew. This girl was…

_Fate Testarossa._

And the girl's eyes opened. And Nanoha found herself staring at the most hauntingly beautiful eyes she had ever seen. Eyes the color of burgundy, which spoke of pain and heartbreaking loneliness.

And immediately, Nanoha _knew_.

She had been ensnared by the girl with the lonely eyes and the broken melody.

"_I wanna hold you high and steal your pain…away…"_


	2. Ch 1:  Magnetism

**Melody of a Broken Memory**

_**A/N: **I couldn't help myself. I got so inspired...I wrote most of this chapter today. Anyway, let's ignore that fact, shall we? -grins-_

_Either way, I decided it wasn't fair to keep you waiting longer than you've already waited for this chapter. I felt really guilty, and I made it longer than I expected to. Really. I usually write long chapter, which oddly, hasn't been the case for my Nanoha fics...Anyway, about the fic I announced in the last author's note, it is still being written. But I warn you, this one isn't exactly...What I mean to say, is that I have no idea whether or not I should upgrade it to M. I mean, there will be no..._that_, but there will be some very...perverse...comments. Innuendo. Yeah...And it will probably be violent. Nothing disturbing, but...hey, what can one do when you have a very bad Fate in your hands? It's kind of...an AU telling what would probably have happened if Nanoha hadn't been there for Fate, or the rest of the characters' whose lives she touches in the anime. And also, a corrupt TSAB led by Jail Spaghetti. Yep. You read correctly. Spaghetti._

_Now, if you'll excuse my rant, please, read and enjoy._

**Chapter 1: ****Magnetism**

_"Smile…you'll steal away my soul…"_

Her legs were shaking and she nearly fell to the floor as she fumbled with the doorknob to her dorm room. She stumbled inside, her heart pounding, her cheeks flushed as she thought of the girl that had somehow managed to ensnare her with her melancholic melody, and her hauntingly beautiful eyes. Eyes the color of burgundy…eyes that made her heart race, eyes which made her pulse speed up without her knowing why.

She dropped her books on the unoccupied bed, oblivious to the emptiness of the room. She did not stop to wonder or question as to why her roommate was not there. She simply stumbled inside the bathroom, and splashed her face with cold water. Drying herself with the towel that was already there, she looked in the mirror. Her face was still flushed. Her eyes glazed over as she remembered the girl's unquestionably amazing music, as she remembered the unfathomable beauty that is Fate Testarossa.

_"Who are you?"_

_It had been a simple question. A simple question, with a simple answer. But as she watched the girl before her, the girl with the graceful pose and the intense eyes, she was not capa__ble of forming a coherent though__t__, much less a coherent sentence__. Not one word escaped her lips as she watched back, an odd sort of fascination playing itself within her mind.__ A tug, a pull, and she had the strangest impulse to touch the other girl's face, to ask her why she was so sad…to ask her the meaning of her beauty._

_"I'm…sorry if I interrupted anything…I'll…I'll be leaving now."_

_"No, wait!"_

_She stood stock still, surprised at the sudden intrusion of her own voice. Her voice seemed to ruin the tranquility that seeped through the other's voice…that soothed her senses without any valid cause._

_"…What__ is it__?"_

_"…I'm…I mean, my name is Takamachi Nanoha…I heard you playing, and I just…I really…loved your music…"_

_The rest of her sentence came out in a whisper. As if she were afraid that if she said the wrong things, the burgundy eyed angel would leave her alone on the rooftop, staring after her with eyes that could not understand the emotions coursing through her. But the girl did not leave, and instead, with an expression that was impossible to comprehend, she smiled. She smiled a smile that did not reach her eyes. _

_And within those eyes there was sorrow. __Pain. Undeniable pain. But there was also curiosity. And although there was nothing more within those eyes, Nanoha felt a shudder pass through her. And this time, it had nothing to do with being nervous. Her breath was taken away from her. She felt frozen. __And it felt as though her stomach had a mind of its own. Her heart beat erratically in her chest as she watched the smile._

_As she watched the girl with the lonely eyes and the broken smile extend her hand towards her. _

_"My name is Fate Testarossa. It's…nice to meet you."_

_And she had such a broken smile. So why had it so suddenly become harder for her to breathe? But she smiled back as best as she could as her insides felt like jelly, and her legs trembled on the solid ground. She accepted the hand, and she hoped Fate could not tell how nervous she was. She hoped the burgundy eyed girl would not be able to look into her soul__ with those eyes__, and be able to tell exactly why she was acting the way she was. Because even she herself did not know__ why._

_"__…__Same here."_

_And she did not want to leave, but she knew she had to, before she fell to the floor and simply…lost contro__l. She excused herself, and ran, picking up her things hurriedly, and jumping down the stairs to the lobby. As she pushed through the doors leading outside, ignoring the calls of __disapproval being sent her way for running, she could feel the burgundy eyes boring into her back from the rooftop…__and she ran faster, hoping that with time, the intensity of those eyes would fad__e from h__e__r memory__ and her heart __beat __would return to normal._

Unreasonable tears welled up in her eyes and she wiped at them furiously. Unhealthy. The word rung inside her head and echoed within her heart. She slid to the ground, back against cold bathroom wall, and wrapped her arms around her knees. Her heart felt like ice, beating heavily in her chest. And she was confused. Confused about why she was reacting the way she was. Of why she wanted to go back…and be near the creator of the music that would forever resound within her heart.

She shook her head, taking calming breaths, ignoring the trembling that her body was undergoing. She needed to be at the dining hall before seven. She stood up shakily, leaning heavily on the wall. Her legs felt as though they were about to give away, but still she moved towards the beds, trying to see the time on the clock that hung beside the window. It was nearly six. She had an hour to calm herself before having to go downstairs.

She flung herself on the bed, finally calming down enough to rationalize. She was reacting because of the stress of having started at a new school, knowing no people, and she had simply wanted to get to know the mind behind the music. That was what it was, and she was simply overreacting. She sighed and lay back, staring at the ceiling.

Those eyes flashed back into her mind, but this time, there was no rush of adrenaline. There was only an odd feeling in her stomach. A feeling that made her heart flutter, because of the leftovers of the intensity of the gaze that had left her breathless.

"Stupid…" She muttered to herself, shaking her head.

It was completely unreasonable. Absolutely moronic. Ridiculous. The girl was a complete stranger. She snorted. What was she thinking? She had just gotten lost in the pressures of the day. There was nothing to worry about at all. Exactly _why_ was she worrying in the first place? Preposterous. Absurd. She nodded, agreeing with her train of thought.

"…there in the first place? It's dangerous at night, and she was alone!"

Nanoha sat straight up, heart pounding. Someone was at the door.

"I don't know, Hayate-san. Signum-san said she could handle it."

A familiar voice…

"Oh, Yuuno-kun…Signum _always_ says thing like that! It doesn't mean she's invincible!"

The door opened, and a girl stepped through with Yuuno at her heels. The girl Nanoha supposed was named Hayate froze as she saw her, and Yuuno gaped like a fish out of water.

"T-Takamachi-san! You're Hayate-san's roommate?"

Nanoha smiled sheepishly.

"I guess I am."

"Heh," Hayate began, smiling at her with a friendly demeanor, "Nice to meet you, Takamachi-san. I'm Yagami Hayate. I hope we can be friends."

Nanoha nodded, grinning. "But please, call me Nanoha. You too, Yuuno-kun."

Yuuno blushed and nodded, fidgeting. Hayate turned to him.

"Yuuno-kun? Could you tell Arf-san to meet us down at dinner with Chrono-kun? I need to speak with them about…_that_."

Nanoha blinked as Yuuno nodded, looking more serious than she had seen him since she had met him.

"I'll get them down there with Vita-san, Shamal-san, and Zafira-san. Are we going to visit Signum-san today?"

Hayate shook her head.

"I saw her this morning. She seemed tired, although she puts up a great front. Either way, I think she needs to rest for now."

Yuuno nodded in understanding. He turned to leave.

"Oh, Taka-I mean, Nanoha-san. Do you want to eat with us at dinner tonight? We have space in our table." He asked, beginning to fidget again.

Nanoha, puzzled but pleased, nodded. They seemed like nice people, and she wanted to get to know them better. And the faster she got her mind out of the gutter the better. She didn't have time to start thinking weird things about people she had only just met. No matter how beautiful they were.

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"So you've already met Chrono-kun? Oh, well. Another introduction gone to waste. And here I was, planning on telling you all about how he's secretly a cradle robber and he's in love with Vita-chan."

Nanoha grinned and proceeded to laugh at Chrono's outraged face. Beside him, Vita fumed and glared at Hayate. Shamal pat the short girl's head, laughing freely as Vita tried unsuccessfully to steal Hayate's dessert as revenge. Hayate leaned back in her seat, taking her cheesecake well out of the short girl's reach. She seemed pleased at the reactions her comment had gotten.

"That would explain so many things…" Yuuno stated, hiding behind his glass of orange juice.

Chrono glared at him too.

"Oh, yes, ferret boy…laugh while you still can…" He then proceeded to laugh like a maniac.

Nanoha rolled her eyes, but chuckled along at Yuuno's red face.

"So, how was your first day here, Nanoha-san?" Shamal asked amiably.

She grimaced, and said, "I've had worse."

Contrary to her expectations, Shamal laughed and nodded along, agreeing with her.

"I felt the same way last year, but that was before I met Hayate-chan and Fa-" She was interrupted by an elbow to the ribs.

Nanoha blinked and narrowed her eyes in confusion at Vita's violent glare and Hayate's rigid posture beside her. Shamal reddened, and cleared her throat.

"Anyway, I was introduced to Vita-chan, Chrono-kun," She looked to Chrono who had shot her a warning look and nodded almost imperceptibly. "…Signum-san, Arf-chan, and later on, Yuuno-kun."

Nanoha looked to Yuuno, who looked just as confused as she did. She raised her eyebrows at him questioningly, but he shrugged, wrinkling his nose in what she thought was curiosity.

"So, then," She began, fiddling with her fork, "Yuuno-kun hasn't been with you since the start?"

"No." He answered, "I arrived near the end of last semester as a transfer student. So, I'm basically almost as new here as you are."

"And almost as naïve as a child." Another voice came.

They turned their heads towards the voice, and Nanoha saw a rash looking young woman walking towards them beside a buff young man. Yuuno grinned at the newcomer.

"Arf-san." He said brightly, "Zafira-san."

"I thought you wouldn't make it." Vita said, leaning back in her chair.

"As if I'd be one to miss a meeting. Who's she, though? New?" Arf asked, jabbing a finger at Nanoha.

"Yes and no." Hayate answered immediately.

Nanoha blinked confusedly, much like Arf.

"People really don't know how to be subtle around here." Chrono muttered under his breath.

"Takamachi Nanoha." She introduced herself, "I'm a new student here. It's nice to meet you, Arf-san."

Arf nodded and plopped down in the chair beside her. Zafira, who hadn't uttered a word since she had seen him, sat down across from her, beside Shamal.

"By the way," Chrono began, looking directly at Arf, "I heard _she's_ come back. I thought you should know."

Arf's eyes darkened. Again, Nanoha looked to Yuuno and Hayate, but the boy seemed just as lost as she was, and the girl beside her once again seemed made out of stone.

"Who's _she_?" Nanoha asked confusedly.

Arf turned to look at her, and for a second, Nanoha thought she looked almost wolfish. Hayate coughed loudly, almost forcefully, and Arf looked away.

"She's no one important." Arf said coldly, a hint of bitterness edged in her voice. "Right, _Hayate-chan_?"

There was something almost mocking in the way she said the brown haired girl's name. Hayate looked away.

"Right…" She said, "…No one important."

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The next day, Nanoha walked with Yuuno to class. The young man had been waiting for her in the lobby, and had beamed at her when he had seen her. She was beginning to get the feeling that Yuuno was going to become one of those overly friendly guys with whom she'd had problems before. She hoped Yuuno wouldn't end up like that. She really liked his personality, even if they had only just met the day before.

"So, Nanoha-san…" He seemed nervous for some reason. "Have you heard of the music competition the school is planning?"

Intrigued, she replied, "No, I hadn't heard of it. Is it a solo competition? Or do you need a partner?"

"You need a partner for this one. I heard last year's was a solo, though. I don't know much about it, so, why don't we ask Kubo-sensei about it during class?"

"Right!" She nodded eagerly, "I've always been fascinated by the competitions! Maybe this time I can find a partner who plays an instrument that goes well with the piano!"

Nanoha was oblivious to Yuuno's flinching, or the way he blushed when she took his hand once she realized they were late. They managed to dash inside Lindy's classroom before the second bell rang, with a few minutes to spare.

"Good morning Harlaown-sensei!" She greeted cheerfully.

"Good morning to you, Nanoha-san. How was yesterday for your first day?"

Again, she grimaced. "It was okay, but I've had better."

Lindy smiled knowingly.

"It's always like that for new students. You'll get used to it soon."

Nanoha nodded and moved to take her seat beside Yuuno. She observed as the other students held conversations with other people, but for some reason, she was not motivated enough to begin speaking with Yuuno. Besides, she honestly wouldn't know what to talk about. It hit her how little she really knew about the people she had already begun to call friends.

It was as she sat there, contemplating life, that the doors opened again and another student walked through, right before the second bell rang. And Nanoha found herself straightening up in her seat. Her mouth suddenly and inexplicably dry as she watched the burgundy eyed girl walk gracefully inside the classroom. Even without the violin, the girl maintained unnatural poise, making her seem otherworldly. Like a goddess among humans.

"Harlaown-sensei." She heard Fate call, softly, and yet her voice carried throughout the classroom.

Nanoha was suddenly aware that everyone had stopped talking.

"Ah…" Lindy said, surprised, "Testarossa-san…What are you doing here?"

"I've been asked to transfer to this class."

An awkward looking boy in the back row stood up hastily, and walked with his things to the front.

"I-I asked f-f-for an exchange, H-Harlaown-sensei." He stuttered, fixing his glasses on the bridge of his nose.

He moved to get a few papers from his portfolio, but he tripped and sent the papers to the floor. Fate kneeled down to help him gather his papers, and the boy blushed hotter than a tomato painted crimson. He gave a little awkward bow, his blush intensifying when Fate smiled at him, and handed the paper to Lindy.

She looked over the paper quickly, and nodded. The boy ran outside the classroom, eager to get to his proper class. Lindy coughed awkwardly.

"I think that a change in seating is in order, then. Sit in alphabetical order."

Nanoha ended up having to move up a seat, still ending up beside Yuuno. He grinned at her, and pointed at Fate.

_'She's the one who wrote those scores!'_ He mouthed at her.

She nodded, too nervous to do anything else.

"Alright…So...According to your last name, you'd be seated after Takamachi." Lindy stated, looking up from her class list. "Stand up, Nanoha-san."

And she did. Slate blue eyes met burgundy, and again, her knees began to tremble. She was also almost one hundred percent sure that the other girl thought her a freak from the way she had acted the day before. Fate stopped in front of her and held out her hand.

"Yesterday, you dropped this…" She whispered, her eyes never moving from hers.

Nanoha swallowed. She hadn't noticed.

"Thanks…" She said, reaching out with her hand.

She took the chain from Fate's hand, her own lingering a little longer than was truly necessary. She sat down rapidly once she had noticed, blinking as her face went up in flames. She could still feel the intensity of those eyes on her back as she leaned over her notebook, pretending to listen to the teacher even though her mind was miles away. Miles away…with the melody that had haunted her during her sleep the previous night.

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"Nanoha-chan! We have gym together today!"

Nanoha looked up from her book, and into the face of Yagami Hayate. She checked her schedule.

"Oh!" She gasped, "So…I don't have music today."

Hayate plopped down beside her.

"Why are you so disappointed?"

Why _was_ she disappointed? She shook her head.

"Well, it's just I was planning on asking Kubo-sensei about the music competition."

Hayate grinned.

"You can do that later. Today, we're exercising!"

Big, sarcastic yay. Nanoha grimaced. She was not good at sports. No. She was not good at them at all.

"Erm…there's no way at all I can pass, is there?"

"Nope!" Hayate said cheerfully, unaware of Nanoha's impending doom. "I think we're going to start dodge ball today."

How lucky. She got to get pelted by high speed cannon balls. Well, okay. So they weren't exactly cannon balls. They still hurt all the same. She sighed resignedly. Almost as if by bad karma, the bell chose that time to ring.

"Come on, Nanoha-chan! Dodge ball!"

And she was dragged all the way into a crowded locker room by an overly enthusiastic Hayate. Said enthusiast literally jumped out of her school uniform and into her gym uniform. Nanoha simply thanked whoever was out there that this class was last period and that she only had it ever two days. She trudged out of the locker room after Hayate, and sighed.

After a brief introduction from their teacher, she was assigned to a different team than Hayate, and they _were_ playing dodge ball. Just her luck. Once the game started, she almost immediately got knocked onto her back by a ball to the face. She crawled pitifully towards the side lines, watching as the body count rose. Her team lost. Not to her surprise. Her team usually lost.

Second game, she managed to duck and survive, actually managing to hit someone who _wasn't her teammate_. It was around that time that the teacher left them alone to get a cup of coffee, because apparently, five of them in a space of twenty minutes weren't enough to keep him awake. Nanoha was pretty much the last one standing when she was grabbed from behind by a guy with a lecherous grin on his face.

"Let go of me!" She said, struggling to kick his shins.

"Let her go, Jail."

It was Hayate, and she looked none too happy to see the guy. He frowned, feigning confusion.

"Why, Hayate-_chan_? I'm just playing." He nodded to another guy. "We needed to hold her in place for her initiation."

The guy tossed a ball at Nanoha. Hayate caught it and delivered it with a speed Nanoha had not expected. She supposed Hayate was actually very good at sports. And she was truly, eternally grateful. Now, if only she could get the monkey off of her…

"Aw, don't ruin my fun…" Jail groaned, rolling his eyes. He shoved Nanoha forward. "Welcome to the Academy, kid. You ever want to have some fun; well, you know where to find me."

He winked at her. Nanoha displayed a genuine mask of horror. Hayate grinned. Jail looked insulted. Thankfully, the teacher came back in time for the bell to ring. He then proceeded to tell them to get in the showers.

"Who was that guy?" Nanoha asked Hayate, once in the shower stalls.

"Jail Scaglietti." She rolled her eyes, "Of course, we call him Jail Spaghetti. Don't tell him that, though. He'll break a nail."

Nanoha couldn't help but laugh at the ridiculousness of the nickname. She couldn't believe she had gotten into trouble with someone else on her second day. No, wait. She could believe it. Yes, especially if it was with people like Jail Scaglietti.

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Wanting to walk outside for a while alone, Nanoha told Hayate to go ahead without her. As she changed into some clean clothes, she wondered how her parents were doing. She wondered how her brother was doing with his girlfriend, and how her sister was fairing in her competitions. This, of course, led her to begin thinking of her friends Alisa and Suzuka. She felt a pang in her heart. She missed them dearly.

"…Come on already, Fate. You've been hung up over this for far too long, now!"

Nanoha stood up, grabbing her things. She approached the door, and her heart stopped. Fate stood with Jail and a few of his friends. She was glaring at him fiercely. Nanoha almost immediately felt a pang of satisfaction at this. She already hated the condescending attitude the boy had towards other people.

"I wonder how you'd sound were you in my position." She said, taking a step back.

"I know you're upset, but you've been at this too long, Fate. It's time you let it go."

Fate shook her head.

"I don't think you _do_ understand, Jail. Either way, I'm done talking to you. I've already given you my answer."

Jail glared and took a step towards her.

"I'm not taking no for an answer Fate. Now let's go, and have some fun for a while, and then you'll give me the answer I want to hear."

She took a step back, not looking nervous at all.

"Stay away from me Jail. I don't need this right now."

She turned around. Nanoha almost immediately realized this was not a good thing to do. He grabbed her by the arm and forcefully drew her back to him. Nanoha took this as her cue. She grabbed a dodge ball from the racks and tossed it as hard as she could at him. It hit him in a tender area, and he fell on his knees howling in pain. His idiot friends, too surprised to do anything, did not move when she grabbed Fate's hand and pulled her through the doors of the gym.

She had no idea where she was headed; she simply followed her instincts and kept moving away from the gym. The last thing she wanted to do was have Jail follow them and pick up where he left off during dodge ball. And now, he would be angrier than before. Why had she even done that in the first place?

"Stupid…" She berated herself under her breath as she ran. "Absolutely stupid…"

What had gotten into her the last few days? Holding conversations in her own head…Loss of sanity? No, that was putting it mildly. After all, that couldn't explain the anomalies in her heart beat…

She finally stopped beside a lake, out of breath. She slid down to the ground, panting, unaware of the fact she had just pulled the other girl down with her. After a few seconds, she seemed to realize the odd stare being sent her way. It was then that she started laughing. Laughing because she could not believe the ridiculousness of what she had just done. Laughing because she had not felt so alive in a long time.

"I'm sorry…" She said, looking anywhere but at the girl beside her, seemingly not having noticed that she was still holding her hand. "I shouldn't have done that."

"…Thank you."

Whatever she had been expecting, it had certainly not had anything to do with that. She bit her lower lip, still refusing to look at the other girl.

"I have no idea what came over me. I had no intention of doing that when I had come out of the locker room…It just sort of happened."

"…To be honest, I'm sort of glad it did."

This time, she could not help but look at Fate. Their eyes met again, and her heart jumped to her throat.

"Why?" She asked softly.

Fate simply smiled a smile not meant to be seen by the outside world, and letting go of her hand, she stood. And Nanoha watched as the girl walked away without a second glance, her mind numb with the aftereffects of that smile...

It was only minutes later that Nanoha realized she had no idea where she was or how to get back to the school.

_"Smile…I'll hide away and cry…"_

_**A/N: **You still there? Still intrigued? I sure hope so. Thanks for reading!_

_:nudges reader towards review button: _

_Please review and leave me feedback. There's a high chance I'll update much faster. Not blackmail. Honestly. It's a known fact that reviews are food for writers! -grins-_

_...Come to think of it, it's about time I updated my stupid profile...I have a bunch of new quotes...Oh well. Such is the life of a chronic procrastinator._

_Cheers!_


	3. Ch 2:  Learning

**Melody of a Broken Memory**

**Chapter 2: Learning**

_"__When I am with you__ t__here's no reason to __pretend..."_

The weeks went by at their usual slow pace, Nanoha thankfully being able to avoid any trouble with Jail Scaglietti and his gang of idiots. Of course, it seemed that having Hayate and Chrono as friends helped a lot in that department. What it did not help, however, was her growing interest in Fate Testarossa. For that matter, the other girl was making it increasingly difficult to think coherently during class, and it was not for the first time that Lindy Harlaown had to snap her book shut in front of her to gain her attention.

"Nanoha-san…" Her teacher growled, "…next time you space out, I'm sorry to say it will be detention for you."

A blush spread across her face.

"Yes, Lindy-sensei…" She said softly, looking down at her desk ashamedly.

"Either way…" Lindy continued, her voice and eyes softer, "Will you hand these out while I take attendance?"

Nanoha stood from her seat immediately, nodding eagerly. Lindy handed her a stack of papers. With a jolt, Nanoha realized she had been assigned to hand out their first English test. And the anxious glares she was receiving meant her classmates were aware of this too. Nanoha twitched. She had always hated being the messenger of death.

Dutifully, she began handing out the tests, trying her hardest not to peek at the grades. It was difficult, however, when she stumbled across her friend Yuuno's test, and she had to fix her eyes on him the whole way to his desk. When she came across her own test, she took a peak at the score.

An A. A very high A, at that. A 96, to be precise.

She smiled. She had always been good at English.

She dropped it at her desk, sliding it underneath her notebook, and turned to look at the next test. And the very beautiful and neat handwriting on the paper. The name Fate Testarossa stood out in perfect cursive, and this time, Nanoha could not resist looking at the grade below.

Nor could she help the wince when she did.

What a…horrifying grade…

She handed the test back to the elusive blonde, who actually seemed worried, lines creasing her pretty face. And Nanoha felt a stab of guilt that was not her own to feel. Especially when she saw the horror in Fate's expression.

A boy peaked over her shoulder.

"Wow, Testarossa-san. I think that's your highest English score yet."

Nanoha blinked. Her…highest…score…?

Fate continued to stare at her test, as if entranced by the possibility that those lovely numbers would magically turn into an A.

"I could help you with that, if you want."

Yes. Those words…out of her mouth before she could even think about what she was considering.

Fate looked up at her slowly, as if waking up from her trance. Nanoha felt her heart flip. Or cartwheel. Maybe it was riding rollercoaster ride. It felt the same.

"Really?" The burgundy eyed girl asked; her voice was soft as always.

"Yes…I…I got a 96 in my test…and…you looked so…" She trailed off, her voice oddly high pitched. "I mean, you don't have to if you don't want to but…"

But instead of accusing her of being a freak, Fate smiled that impossibly haunting smile of hers and nodded.

"I'd love to have you as my tutor."

Her brain felt as though it had shut down.

"I'd love to tutor you…"

Nanoha mentally slapped herself. What the hell was that? She sounded like some stupid, love struck teenager in one of those corny movies in which fluff pours from the water fountains and cherubs fly across the halls of some random high school shooting arrows at everyone for their own twisted pink pleasure…

"Oi, Takamachi-san! Hurry it up with the tests, wouldya?!"

She snapped out of her Fate induced stupor and moved quickly through the rest of the exams, not bothering to look at the tests as she was much too distracted by the blonde whose eyes never left her. As she sat down in her seat, she began to fidget, flushed and unbelievably happy for a reason that escaped her. A sudden nudge in her shoulder made her look back, and a folded piece of paper was placed in her hands. The burgundy eyed girl smiled at her again, but this time, it was more haunting in its beauty than in its melancholy.

She opened the piece of paper, face in flames, feeling two pairs of eyes peering at her from different directions.

_"Meet me at the roof at five o'clock if you can make it. Thank you for offering to tutor me, Takamachi-san.__ I __need the help terribly__"_

It was brief, and yet it made her heart race as though it were some kind of love letter. She mentally slapped herself. What in the world was wrong with her? And suddenly, it struck her that she would be alone with Fate Testarossa. She sank low in her seat, somehow feeling faint, and thought about how much easier it would be if it were Yuuno.

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She was chronically jumpy throughout the day. People noticed. Of course, people normally tend to notice these things when someone jumps out of the way when you ask them what time it is. Such was the case with Yagami Hayate. It went along these lines:

_"Nanoha-chan! What time is it?"_

_"AH!"_

_"…Why'd you jump into the trash can?"_

Yes. People noticed she was jumpy.

She sighed into the palm of her hand, fiddling with her food. She sat beside Hayate, who sat beside the newly arrived Signum, who sat across from Chrono, who sat beside Yuuno, who sat beside Shamal. She sighed again. Hayate poked her.

"What's with all the sighing and the being jumpy, Nanoha-chan?" She was asked.

"Nothing." She said, her cheeks coloring.

Shamal narrowed her eyes at her, and leaned forward, staring. Or inspecting. Hayate followed suit.

"Hmm…" They both hummed in unison, and shared a quick smile.

Nanoha blinked, and fidgeted nervously. She was not eager to find out why they were smiling. Those were the smiles of two plotting people.

"What is it?" She asked, leaning away from them.

"That is the sigh of loooove!" Hayate said in a sing song voice.

"Oh, that is what I thought, Hayate-chan! The sigh of love!" Shamal grinned at Hayate at Nanoha's incredulously denying face.

"What are you two going on about?" Chrono asked, glaring from behind his French fries.

"She's in love." Shamal replied.

"In love?" He echoed.

"In love." Hayate stated, nodding her head affirmatively.

"I am not!" Nanoha sputtered, and looked at Chrono, face in flames. "D-don't listen to them!"

Chrono raised an eyebrow.

"You're denying it awfully enthusiastically…"

"That's because she's lying." Hayate stated, and leaned into the palm of her hand. "Ah, the first stages…First comes denial, then comes anger, and then finally comes acceptance…"

Nanoha twitched in her seat at the group's discussion of her love life. Yuuno seemed awfully interested in finding out who it was, though, because he kept staring at her with a blush on his face. Finally, though, Signum took pity on her.

"Leave the poor girl alone, Hayate-chan. Nanoha-chan's probably just tired from all the stress. She's still new here, after all. Maybe she's having problems with a teacher…" The girl murmured from her seat, jotting down some last minute notes on her assignment. She closed the notebook and lay the pen down on its side. "You received your first English test today, didn't you, Yuuno-kun? How did you fare?"

Yuuno nodded his head and sipped on his juice before answering.

"I did pretty well. I scored an 84. Hey, you never did tell me your grade, Nanoha-san."

Nanoha smiled, happy at the change in conversation, and answered, "I scored a 96."

"Who got the worst score?" Chrono asked, popping another fry into his mouth.

"Fate Testarossa." Yuuno answered, not expecting the sudden change in atmosphere.

Signum froze in place, hand hovering over her fork. Hayate sat rigidly in her seat, staring straight at Yuuno, with an unreadable expression on her face. Chrono stuffed a ridiculous number of fries into his mouth.

"Well, that's not a surprise…" Signum muttered under her breath, eyes flashing and turning to look at Hayate almost stiffly. "She was always bad at English, wasn't she, Hayate-chan?"

It was a demeanor that she had never seen Signum act out towards anyone, and it surprised Nanoha to see the emotion directed towards Hayate of all people. Signum seemed to adore the younger girl, and vice versa.

"Yes…She was..." Hayate answered, just as stiffly, "…I wonder what she'll do now…"

Nanoha kept quiet, unsure of whether she should mention her meeting with said burgundy eyed beauty later that day. The rest of the conversation died at Hayate's remark, and everyone, including Yuuno, seemed extremely uncomfortable for many different reasons.

"Well…I'm going to take a walk before the next class…" She said, standing from her seat. She directed her gaze at Yuuno imploringly. "Want to come, Yuuno-kun?"

The emerald eyed boy shook his head mournfully and said, "I can't. I have to review for my French test…I would go otherwise…"

Nanoha was a bit disappointed, but shook her head and smiled.

"It's okay. You're busy. Well, I'll see you guys later then."

And with that, she was off, walking across the lobby and making her way outside. Having stepped through the door, she trailed the path, her mind wandering. She found it extremely suspicious that Hayate and the others seemed to stiffen every time the name Fate Testarossa was mentioned. And the cold behavior towards Hayate was also beginning to make her think something wasn't right. There was something off. She was beginning to feel it in her heart, and was starting to see the intricately woven patterns that tied Fate and Hayate together.

And suddenly, she began to wonder why it was that the burgundy eyed girl was nowhere to be found on campus. And why, exactly, did she want to be instructed up on the roof?

Nanoha frowned. Fate Testarossa was quickly becoming a very intense distraction, and she was doing nothing to stop it from progressing. The beauty the other girl possessed was only one of the many things that crept along her mind. She was confused at the cold aura that surrounded the otherworldly girl, and the mystery that enshrouded her. The girl was also elusive, and was quick to avoid getting trapped in corners that would make her uncomfortable. Nanoha had noticed that much.

But she also seemed to have a warm personality hiding underneath all of it. She had such expressive burgundy eyes, eyes that said everything and nothing at the same time. Her elegance and grace, her poise and her mastery of the violin…it awed Nanoha. And for some reason that escaped her, she was attracted to this individual. She wanted to see beyond the mask presented to the world. She wanted to see the person that lurked just underneath that façade. The real Fate. Not the fake one, with the fake smiles, and the fake laughs, and the haunting and lonely eyes.

She wanted to see the girl she had managed to catch a glimpse of that day at the lakefront. The girl with the sparkling eyes, so full of mirth. She wanted to see that secretive smile again, that smile not meant to be seen by the world. The smile that made her heart stop beating; that made her breath hitch in her throat.

Never before had she been so smitten by curiosity, nor had she ever felt the things the burgundy eyed girl made her feel. Whether or not the blonde was aware of it, she was beginning to obtain a power over Nanoha that she had never meant to give. And it terrified her.

"Takamachi-san…?"

She blinked, and her eyes focused. And once more, burgundy suddenly invaded her vision.

She jumped backwards and accidentally tripped against the root of a tree, falling backwards on her bottom. She stared, wide eyed, at the amused figure of one Fate Testarossa. Clearly the other had no idea she had just been thinking about her. Clearly she had no idea how much this had startled her. Clearly...she was laughing?

Fate was hunched over, the palm of her right hand flat on a tree for support. Her other hand clutched her side, and her eyes were closed, pretty mouth emitting a soft laughter that seemed too controlled to be natural. She found herself reddening from the bottom of her neck up to her face, from both embarrassment at her fall and amazement at how pretty the other girl's laughter was.

"Testarossa-san…!" She trailed off, her face still blazing.

Fate took a deep breath and stopped laughing, but her face still glowed with mirth. She extended her hand towards Nanoha, and when the other girl took her hand, she pulled her up. Nanoha looked away from her in embarrassment.

"You shouldn't creep up on people like that while they're thinking…" She murmured embarrassedly, staring at the floor.

She could almost feel Fate's quiet smile. Her cheeks grew even hotter.

She nearly flinched when she felt soft fingertips trailing the side of her face. Fate brushed a few stray strands of hair behind her ear.

"Be careful while taking your walks, Takamachi-san. Someone may try and hurt you."

The words were true and Fate's tone of voice was sincere and concerned. But her face showed nothing, and neither did her eyes. And before she knew it, the burgundy eyed girl was walking away again, a repetition of the previous time they had spent together in the forest.

"Wait!"

She couldn't help but call after her. It was something that came as an instinct. Fate stopped short, a few feet away from her. She looked over her shoulder.

"Yes?"

Nanoha paused for a minute, wondering exactly why she had stopped the other from leaving. Before she knew it or could even think about it, she asked,

"Would you walk with me for a while?"

This time, the other girl fully turned around. Her eyes seemed deadly serious, and her face was unreadable. And somehow, Nanoha got the feeling she was asking something with her glance.

"I'm sorry. I should be on my way. I still need to pick up the books for my next classes."

And just like that, she was alone again.

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She was silent for most of the day after that, speaking only when spoken too, and thinking only of that glance. She was sure Fate had been trying to ask her something, be it consciously or subconsciously, but the question had definitely been there. Her heart ached and she had no idea why.

"Nanoha-san…" Yuuno's voice. He sounded terribly concerned. "Are you alright?"

She smiled and nodded.

"Yes, I'm fine." She lied. "I'm just tired."

Yuuno scrunched up his eyebrows, but accepted her answer.

"Well, look at it this way. You only have one more class until it's over for today." He said, trying to sound cheerful.

"Yeah…" She sighed, began the trek up the stairs up to the top floor.

As they both stepped into the music classroom, they spotted Chrono at his usual seat beside the window. They sat down next to him, aware that they were of the first few to arrive.

"What's up?" Chrono greeted them.

"We're just a bit tired." Yuuno replied, taking out his favored instrument.

"Last night?"

Yuuno quickly looked serious.

"No. Not over last night."

And that conversation made for one very confused Nanoha. And that confusion was quickly tossed aside the moment a certain girl walked through the door. And when that certain girl sat beside her and smiled one of her fake smiles, she was once again reminded of the agreement she had accepted that very morning. Somehow, the day seemed longer. Somehow.

"Very well, class. Settle down."

Her attention was immediately snapped toward the teacher.

"Fate-chan. How very nice of you to come today." He said, and the sarcasm was not lost on Fate.

He seemed almost bitter for some reason.

"I needed to come, or else risk failing, Kubo-sensei." Was her straight-forward, and blatantly honest answer.

"Well, since you're such a hard person to get a hold of, we shall take advantage of this today. Fate-chan, play something for us." He ordered simply, and leaned back on his desk. "Violinists, play close attention to her. You may just learn a thing or two from watching her play. To arms, Testarossa-chan. To arms."

Fate rose from her desk and stood beside the piano. Once in position, with a single fluid motion, a crystal note began to play. By memory, she struck all of the notes perfectly and powerfully, and Nanoha could not help but be swept away again. And before she knew it, Fate was sitting down again, a faded look in her eyes. So sad…so heartbreaking. And Nanoha felt her heart wrench as she suddenly realized that Fate did not enjoy playing the violin.

She played it because it reminded her of a time when she did. And Kubo seemed to know that as well. And that just made Nanoha hate him.

"Stand up, Testarossa." His words were cold, but it was barely noticeable. "I did not say you could sit down. Takamachi-san. Stand."

Startled, and feeling everyone's eyes on her –_even those of burning burgundy_- she stood on his orders.

"To your weapon, Takamachi-san. Play the score. Testarossa." The girl's eyes were unflinching, even as she noticed the obvious frigidness of her teacher's voice. "Play."

Apprehensive slate blue met calm, calculating burgundy.

And immediately, a mutual spell was forged.

She sat and faced the piano, aware of the other's every movement at her side.

_So close, but never enough to reach her._

Her fingers touched the cool keys and her apprehension faded away.

Her eyes read the score, following every rise, visualizing every note with perfect rhythm.

And she began to play.

Hitting notes with crystal fluidity. Hearing the sound of a violin joining and merging with her music. Melancholy, happiness, and nostalgia…all emotions rising from the score she read, and acted out as music. She felt as though her fingers were moving of their own accord, her own thoughts with the blonde playing her violin beside her.

_So pretty…_

And for the first time, she faltered. Her finger struck the wrong key, but she quickly regained her composure, nothing to indicate any distress except her erratic heartbeat. With every beat, there was the soft hum of a note being played. It betrayed nothing of the tormented whirlwind of emotions that she felt. And when the score had ended, and her eyes met Fate's, she felt an emotion surge through her heart. An emotion she could not identify, but she knew that the intensity of Fate's gaze had caused it.

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The remainder of the class was spent in relative silence, simply listening to what everyone could do with their instruments, and figuring out the areas they needed to work with. Nanoha blatantly ignored everything else and simply stayed within her own mind, her body pretending to pay attention, but her mind refusing to focus. She was still there, playing the score, and listening to the way her music seemed to merge with Fate's. Feeling that emotion that tore her out from the inside.

Her mind was so dreadfully confused, and yet her heart was so terribly aware of the things _that girl_ made her feel. So terribly, terribly aware…and yet…she could not understand what it was that she was feeling.

"Nanoha-san…class is over now."

"I know."

"…We'll meet you at dinner then."

"Yes. I'll be there."

"Okay…"

It felt as though she were responding automatically. Her voice was oddly monotone, not cheerful or carrying any sort of emotion as it usually did. She stood from her seat, aware that she was alone in the classroom. She was in a daze as she reached the roof and once there, she dumped her bag beside the door and walked over to the rail. She leaned on it, her heart in her throat and feeling as though she were about to throw up.

She could see the students as they trailed away from the main school building, and she reached out her hand, almost as if to see if she could grab one in her hands. Almost wishing that she were on her way with them.

"You seem lost in thought."

It was more of a statement, than a question. Somehow, Nanoha knew she could have heard that voice anywhere and not have mistaken it for anyone else's. Slowly, almost apprehensively, Nanoha turned around.

"You just wrecked my line of thought."

A nod was her answer. Burgundy eyes looked back at the horizon. The sky was beginning to change its color, commencing its transformation into night. Nanoha turned back to the horizon as well, moving a little to the side so Fate could lean on the railing. For some reason, Nanoha felt cold, despite the warmth of the day.

"…I come here to watch it set."

Nanoha was almost surprised. But not really. Fate seemed like the kind of person who would do that.

She could not help but ask, "Does it inspire you?"

The blonde girl shook her head, and when she answered, her voice was the softest it had ever been.

"It reminds me…"

With a trembling voice, she asked,

"…Of what?"

Fate's eyes were trained on the horizon, but her own could not help but stray towards the face of the girl beside her. The darkest look she had ever seen on her face was this one, her expression a mix of agony and of longing. The blonde's fingers gripped the rail so tightly her knuckles were turning white. And just like that, it was gone, and her face was impassive as ever.

"Shall we begin my tutoring?"

That broken smile. Her body reacted even though her mind was working on overdrive. Heat flared up in her face. She followed Fate back to their bags and sat down beside her as the other girl opened her textbook.

"First I need to know what you got wrong in the test. Then we'll be able to work on your doubts, okay?"

Fate nodded and handed her the textbook. Nanoha fought the rising heat in her cheeks as the other girl leaned over the book, awfully close, and pointed out her faults on the test. Most of her faults were in grammar, and Nanoha immediately understood why she may have confused the rules. They were simple mistakes to correct. Now she simply had to explain the rules.

But she lost all coherent thought as she saw Fate's gaze. The way it bore back at her felt almost electric. That was when she realized that this growing attraction to Fate Testarossa would become a problem.

How in the world was she supposed to teach her if she continued to lose coherency with a single glace?

_"That when I am with you, I feel flames again…"_

_**A/N: **Okay, here are the ages, alright?_

Nanoha: 16 (Junior)

Fate: 16 (Junior)

Yuuno: 16 (Junior)

Hayate: 16 (Junior)

Chrono: 17 (Senior)

Shamal: 16...for now. (Senior)

Signum: 17 (Senior)

Vita: 15 (Sophomore)

Arf: 16 (Junior)

Zafira: 18 (Senior)

Jail: 17 (Senior)

_Anyway, the song you should look for if you want to know what I imagine when Nanoha plays the piano is 'Into Thin Air'. I'm not sure who it's by, but I do know you can find it on Youtube. XD You can find me there too. Same name. Heh, and by the way, I managed to get mother to let me off on early parole during the weekends. So. I'll probably be updating then. Heh. Thanks for reading my stuff. It really means a lot to me, and I'm very attached to my readers. Oh, and a message to you, Squirt. Try not to steal my ideas._

_Anyway, thank you! Cheers!_


	4. Ch 3: Collisions

**Melody of a Broken Memory**

**Chapter 3: Collisions**

"_Even the best fall down sometimes…even the stars refuse to shine…"_

Nanoha's tutoring job could have probably been made much easier had she not been extremely interested in the way Fate's smile would quirk when she got the correct answer. Yes. If she had not been so interested in that smile, she would not have become convinced that Fate's smile was the prettiest thing in the universe and she would not have begun to do everything possible to see it unfold. For example, she would not have picked the easiest problems in her notebook for Fate to practice on.

"So, what's the problem with this sentence?" She asked during one of their afternoon sessions.

Fate's eyes narrowed slightly as she surveyed the problem. Nanoha couldn't help but stare at the girl as she bit her lower lip in concentration. For a moment, she wondered what it would be like to kiss her, but she quickly dispelled that thought with a mental slap. Sheesh…it was almost as if she had a crush on the girl.

"It says: 'Flying over the bridge, Massie spotted a heron.'" Fate laughed softly, and looked up at her with glowing eyes. "In this sentence, Massie would be the one flying, and that's impossible so it doesn't make any sense. Instead, it should be: 'Massie spotted a heron flying over the bridge.'"

Nanoha nodded, fighting her rising blush.

"That's perfect." She said, grinning.

Fate's face came aglow with a broken smile, a smile that reached her eyes and filled them with warmth. Nanoha's heart could not help but pound harshly in her chest and she suddenly felt very lightheaded. Her nails dug sharply into her thighs as she restrained herself from doing something very stupid and reckless. She felt rather foolish as she sheepishly looked back at those burgundy eyes, which were now tinted with hints of concern.

"Are you okay?" Fate questioned, subconsciously tilting her head in a gesture Nanoha could not help but label as cute.

"Yes, of course!" She replied a little too quickly, grinning a little too nervously for Fate to believe her, "Let's move on to the next thing, though. The test is next Friday."

Fate nodded, and Nanoha returned to her English book in search of the next thing that would take her mind off the enigmatic blonde beside her. At least for a few minutes.

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The next day went by too quickly in Nanoha's opinion, but that was probably because she would be subjected to torture in her last class. Torture being Phys Ed. She was twitching as she walked inside the gym, irritated at having to listen to Hayate rant about how much she wanted to play dodge ball again.

"And the way you hold the ball is wrong." She said enthusiastically, with hand signs and everything, "You have to hold it like this and aim for someone who isn't on your team."

"Hayate-chan…" She groaned, rubbing her temples. "I'm just naturally bad at sports. I have horrible hand eye coordination."

Hayate stood in front of her and grabbed her hands. Nanoha stared back at her friend.

"If you concentrate on being bad at them, you'll always suck. A positive attitude is the key to success."

"I'm sorry. What's with the Dr. Phil moment?"

"I have no idea. Is it working?"

"No."

Hayate sighed.

"Oh well. Worth a try."

Five minutes later found Takamachi Nanoha sitting on a bench waiting for their gym teacher to walk inside. Said gym teacher was never late, and it was rather odd that she would be so today. Hayate, although a little worried, said it was probably just traffic.

"Oh, yeah. Traffic for a school in the middle of nowhere."

Was that sarcasm on her behalf? That was rather shocking.

Hayate stared at her as if she had grown a second head.

"Sarcasm…Nanoha-chan…You've used sarcasm." Out of nowhere, she produced a tape recorder. "This is Yagami Hayate speaking. The date is November 15th, the time is 4:05 P.M. Takamachi Nanoha has just shown the first signs of being a normal teenager. She has just used sarcasm out loud." Hayate turned towards her. "Could you repeat what you just said?"

Nanoha rolled her eyes. Hayate grinned at her, and she did not even try to resist the urge to laugh. She was about to reply when the doors to the gym opened and their teacher walked inside.

"Due to certain circumstances, our other gym teacher will not be able to teach for the next few months. As a result, the second period and eighth period gym classes will be merged. Wait for a few minutes and don't do anything stupid while I'm gone. I'm going to get the other students."

Most of the students nodded, but Nanoha found herself groaning in displeasure.

"Oh, great…More people to watch me make a fool out of myself." She complained, sighing resignedly.

Hayate grinned at her.

"Well, the good thing is that Yuuno-kun's in this class."

"I suppose…"

But as soon as the other class walked inside, Hayate and Nanoha both swallowed their words, for very different reasons. Because Fate Testarossa had walked inside the gym, her hair done up with two black ribbons, carrying herself with utmost confidence. Nanoha could not help but quake in horror at the thought of embarrassing herself in front of the other girl, but most of all she couldn't help the furious blush that took over her face as she realized that the other girl looked rather…attractive…in the gym uniform. And while Nanoha struggled with herself, Hayate felt a spasm of fear as she met the blonde's burgundy eyes, as well as a spasm of guilt.

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A few minutes later found them distributed into teams of five. And luckily for Nanoha, she got to be in a team with her most favorite person.

"Please stop staring at my chest, Jail." She snapped, crossing her arms over her upper body.

Jail snickered and moved closer to her.

"I think this should be good payback for the other day, Takamachi. Lemme see 'em…"

A good basketball to the head stopped him from proceeding any further. Ten feet away from him, Hayate bounced another one in her hands, shooting intense glares in his direction. Jail only rubbed the back of his head and glared back at her before concentrating on the teacher's instructions.

"Now that you've been split into teams, I want you to practice against each other. Scrya-kun's team and…Yagami-chan's will practice on court outside. Scaglietti's team and Testarossa-san's inside. I'll be back as soon as I get my coffee."

And with that, the teacher turned on her heel and left through the doors. Hayate and Yuuno reluctantly walked after her, shooting nervous looks at Jail, who was snickering at Nanoha's expression of horror. Actual fear slithered across her chest.

"I swear Jail. You hurt her and I'll make sure you'll have no children." Hayate threatened, eyes glaring dagger's at Jail.

Said boy smirked coldly at her before turning back to Nanoha.

"You hear that?" He asked her, eyes promising things Nanoha didn't want to think about, "She's gonna make sure I have no children."

She glared back at him but bit back a retort. She really doubted he wanted to hear how much she wanted to castrate him.

Once Hayate and Yuuno had left, Nanoha turned her attention on the other team, namely the burgundy eyed girl whose eyes seemed to be in a wrestling match with Jail's. The both of them were rather tense, their connection electric and not in the good way. But that connection was broken when Fate's eyes moved to meet hers, and the girl smiled a smile that did not reach her eyes, and Nanoha could not help but smile back. Her face was, for the first time, surprisingly controlled and did not show the blush that she felt in her stomach.

Pretty soon, they were playing a game of basketball, and Nanoha was trying her best not to give the ball to the opposite team, flushing in embarrassment when people began to snicker at her lack of ability in the sport. At the very beginning of the game, she learned that Fate Testarossa was pretty much good at anything she tried to do except maybe for English. She learned this as Fate stole the ball from under Jail's nose and very elegantly and nearly expertly tossed it. It swished through the hoop, and Nanoha could not help but stare at the blonde. That is, until a basketball hit her head and she was knocked back into a stack of volleyballs.

Her foot twisted underneath her as she tried to obtain her balance and prevent the fall. She landed in an odd position, and her ankle throbbed so viciously that she could not help but cry out in pain.

"Nice one Jail!" One of said boy's friends exclaimed, in the middle of a high five.

In the middle of a mine field of volleyballs, Nanoha attempted to stand up but staggered and fell back down almost as soon as she applied pressure on her ankle. She used the wall to stand up, grimacing in pain, but tripped on a volleyball and was about to fall flat on her face when a hand shot out and helped steady her.

"Are you okay?"

Nanoha leaned heavily against Fate, her face flushed in embarrassment and pain. Her foot throbbed at a constant beat, and Nanoha could not help but think that its rhythm resembled some kind of drum beat. She glared fiercely at Jail before looking away.

"No…not really…" She admitted, frowning as she realized that she had probably sprained her ankle.

Fate drew her up straight and had Nanoha place her arm around her neck.

"I'd better take you to the infirmary."

"Tha-that's really not necessary!" She sputtered, blushing at the proximity. "I'm sure it'll be fine if I wait a while…"

Fate looked at her with unreadable eyes. Nanoha's heart did a cartwheel. Did Fate realize how beautiful her eyes were?

"You look too flushed to be normal…Takamachi-san, I'm sorry, but I think I should take you to the infirmary."

Nanoha's waist felt as though it was burning. Scratch that, her whole body was up in flames. Why did she feel like pretending she was very hurt, and in a lot of pain?

"Okay…" She replied, her heart in her throat.

Fate helped her hobble over to the doors and one of their classmates opened it for them. Jail snickered as they left, and some more cat calls completely convinced Nanoha that he had done it on purpose. The monkey…someday, she'd make him regret everything he'd done…

"Um, thanks for helping me…" She said, looking anywhere but at Fate as they walked in the direction of the main school building.

She could feel Fate's eyes observing her, and her blush spread.

"…You're nervous."

Startled, Nanoha stopped walking. An episode ensued. She nearly fell flat on her face.

"No I'm not!" She began, her eyes finally meeting Fate's without her face being enveloped in flames, "I'm just- I mean, I just- You're so-!"

Fate looked thoroughly amused at her stuttering. She began to laugh quietly. Nanoha glared at her feebly.

"…You do that to me. You're so…intense…"

Fate looked surprised. Her eyes shone in the sunlight, and from behind her blonde bangs, she could see a gentle melancholy, the same profound sorrow she had seen that first afternoon with the violin.

With a trembling voice, she asked, "…Why are you so sad?"

Fate grimaced slightly, her face scrunching up almost as though it were physically painful. And for the first time since Nanoha had met her, Fate faltered. The mask cracked and she saw such terrifying agony. She was left breathless with the pain of having to see such broken eyes, the mind behind them clouded by such terrible grief. Nanoha gripped Fate's shirt to keep herself from falling and the girl's mask snapped back into place. Her eyes were dark as she answered with an unreadable smile.

"We're nearly there. Come. I don't want to let your ankle get swollen."

And once more, the blonde had skillfully dodged her question.

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The next day, Nanoha woke up feeling as though her leg had been run over by a car three times consecutively. She could barely walk on it, and when she did, she was limping badly. This only added to her great embarrassment, because Jail and his gang of idiots made jokes about it every chance they got. Even worse, now Fate Testarossa had become concerned with her leg and had offered to help her walk 

to her next class. She had refused, blushing profusely, cursing at any gods who had found it to their convenience to bother her.

Then, she had proceeded to make her escape. She met up with Hayate in the hallways and thanked God that she had the next class with her. She dragged her along, making it clear to any passerby that she did not want to dawdle in the hallways. It had not been funny when she tripped over a book bag, but sacrifices had to be made. She did not think she could survive being that close to the beautiful blonde without doing or saying something extremely stupid.

"…Not that it would make much of a difference…" She muttered under her breath.

"Not that what would make much of a difference, Nanoha-chan?" Hayate blinked and smiled at her confusedly.

She immediately turned red from embarrassment and shook her head.

"I-It's nothing. I was just thinking to myself."

"Okay…" She trailed off, sensing that Nanoha did not want to discuss it further.

By the time they made it to their second period biology class, she had successfully convinced herself that she had _not_ wanted Fate Testarossa to help her walk to her next class, no matter the fact that they would be within touching distance. She slid into her seat beside her partner at the lab table and settled for watching Hayate make her way to her own lab table. As the bell rang, the impossible happened. Fate Testarossa walked inside the classroom with a few others, including Yuuno, who seemed quite happy to see them. The teacher walked in a second later and began re-arranging people's seats.

Nanoha's plan had been in vain.

A surge of electricity ran through her and Fate took her newly assigned seat beside her. _Why did it _have _to be Testarossa?_

"For the next few months, classes will be re-arranged and you will be sharing a few periods with people you probably know. I'm sure this will be a welcome change among you, but please refrain from screaming and squealing until outside my classroom." He said, not that she heard him, "This will probably be temporary until we find a substitute teacher.

"Now. Let's get back to work. Who remembers…?"

She had been sitting quite stiffly in her seat when she felt the traces of warm breath in her ear and the heat of a body close to hers.

"It's very horrid of me, but I'm glad my Gym teacher is having problems. I wouldn't have gotten this class with you otherwise."

Any hopes she had of surviving this class sank down to the bottom. She ignored her common sense and turned her head. Her breathing hitched in her throat at seeing Fate's face so close to hers. She mentally slapped herself.

"I'm really glad…about this too…"

Fate's smile was radiant. She turned to face the teacher and Nanoha looked back at her notebook.

She tried very hard not to be hyperaware of Fate for the rest of the hour, and since that was impossible, she tried to at least not let Fate know she was aware of her. She had to bite her lip to keep herself from doing something extremely stupid, like grabbing Fate's hand just to feel what her skin was like, or running her hands though golden locks to see if they were as soft as they looked. She sighed into the palm of her hand, and with a peek from out the corner of her eye, she realized Fate was in the exact same position, right down to her eye peeking back at her.

Fate turned her head towards her and smiled, her face still leaning on the palm of her hand. Nanoha's heart sputtered hyperactively, and she could not help the answering smile that tugged at her lips. And for the first time, she thought that maybe…just maybe…everything would be okay.

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After a day of running into Fate in a few other classes, she was really quite ready for some peace and quiet. Too bad these things can't last.

"Nanoha-chan…!" An unbelievably perky and happy voice sang, "What are you doing for Christmas break?"

The brown haired girl blinked and watched as Hayate jumped on her bed, seeming over excited for some reason.

"I'm not sure…" She answered, keeping her voice light, "I suppose I might go back home for the break, but…"

"You're open to suggestions?" Hayate asked gleefully.

Nanoha smiled and replied, "Of course."

"Well, then, why don't you come with me? I promise it'll be a lot of fun and everything! Yuuno and Chrono are both coming, and I'm sure Signum, Shamal, and Vita won't mind if I bring you along!"

Nanoha blinked, perplexed.

"Signum, Shamal, and Vita are coming too?" She inquired, a little confused by Hayate's tiny rant.

"Oh." Hayate said, and she smiled sheepishly, "I never told you about that, did I? Shamal, Signum, Vita, Zafira, and I all live together. We're sort of…" Hayate trailed off as if looking for the correct word. "…related."

To say she was surprised was an understatement. She gaped at Hayate.

"You all look so…"

"Different?" Hayate offered with a smile. "Yeah, we're not closely related. It's more of a…she's-the-daughter-of-my-mother's-uncle's-sister's-son's-cousin type of thing."

"That's so cool."

They shared a grin.

"Then you'll come?"

"Definitely."

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A few days later, Nanoha found herself taking a walk during lunch when the blonde that occupied her thoughts ran up to her, panting slightly.

"I did it!" Fate gasped, seeming excited, "I got an A on the English test! Harlaown-sensei looked for me this evening and told me!"

The surge of happiness that she felt at those words was nothing compared to the one she felt when Fate drew her into a hug. She hugged her back, dazed, for the first time noticing the scent of roses emanating from Fate's hair.

"That's great, Testarossa-san!" She said cheerily, and half heartedly withdrew from the embrace.

Fate's eyes were shining, and as she looked into them, a familiar emotion rose from her stomach up to her heart. Nanoha felt herself grin back at Fate, happy to see her happy. The blonde took her hands in hers and kissed her cheek, and she looked even more breathtaking with her hair lightly ruffled from running and the sun hitting her at such an angle that her eyes looked brighter and more enticing than Nanoha had ever seen them. Her heart squeezed pleasantly.

And when Fate spoke, her voice was impossibly soft.

"Thank you, Takamachi-san…"

With a spur of courage from somewhere she could not identify, Nanoha raised her hand, hesitating only for a moment, before brushing her fingertips along the length of Fate's cheekbone. Fate's eyes were intense and made her lose all coherent thought, and so she played it off by sliding her fingers under her chin and smiling widely.

"You silly girl…You could have done it without my help."

Fate smiled crookedly and her eyes still retained that intense, focused look. The urge to lean in and capture her lips became nearly overpowering.

"Thank you, Nanoha."

She froze, and Fate's smile became ever larger, but her eyes were serious. She squeezed her hand briefly before walking away. Again, Nanoha was left in the middle of the trail, dazed and with her heart beating rapidly in her chest. Except this time, the encounter had been electric.

She looked up at the darkening sky, the wind making her messenger bag bump lightly against her side. She sighed and took a hand to her heart.

"What's wrong with me?"

"_Out of the back you fall in time…I somehow find you and I collide…"_

_**A/N: **It's been way too long for comfort. Seriously. Blergh. Sorry. I'm a senior and I'm graduating next month. It's only to be expected. Things are getting a lot harder for me school-wise. Emotionally, I'm getting better. Anyway, I realize I've made you wait a really, really long time for this update, so, again, I apologize. My next update will probably be Red R o s e s, because that's the thing I'm closest to finishing, but stay tuned for S h a t t e r e d Upon Impact since I've finally gotten over my writer's block. I have regained my inspiration, and am sad to say that it will probably be only a few more chapters before it ends. Meh, I have other stories to write, I suppose. And I won't quit until I've got them finished. So don't worry. I ain't a quitter. And boy, did I just sound like an idiot. XD _

_And about the Dr. Phil comment, I could not resist. Do not bother with the details. D _

_:nudges reader towards review button: _

_...please? I promise to be good and update very soon._


	5. Ch 4: Fog

**Melody of a Broken Memory**

**Chapter 4:** Fog

"_And I am not scared of falling down…I am not scared of dark, dark clouds…"_

She was standing on the school's rooftop, leaning back against the railing and holding on to the steel bars. She was not afraid as she hung over the edge, almost a hundred feet away from the ground. Storms were gathering in the sky, so quickly it looked as though someone had set the world on fast forward. She was one with the wind as it beat against her, restless gusts threatening to become forceful.

And she was smiling, taking immense pleasure in breathing deeply, in swaying along with it. She was glorious, hair let loose from her usual ponytail, and there was suddenly no doubt in her mind that she could fly.

Arms circled her waist and everything seemed to freeze. The clouds, having been swirling in the beginnings of a black tornado, stopped their motions. The wind ceased and the world, which up until that moment had darkened considerably, turned an eerily familiar shade of red. Her breathing picked up, because the embrace was so familiar, and she almost had to laugh. It was instinct, the way she leaned against that body, and the way she turned her face to press her mouth against that cheek, warm and soft and so very comforting.

"Nanoha."

She sighed and shivered as it was spoken directly into her ear, that smooth and velvety voice making her swallow dryly as her mind found less innocent thoughts to deal with. As those hands pressed against her in all the right places and a mouth dragged lazily against the skin of her neck, she felt the overwhelming desire to turn around and capture those lips with her own.

"Nanoha…"

She turned and leaned forward, freezing in her tracks as her eyes met those of heartbreaking burgundy.

"Nanoha…"

A hand caressed her face and she sighed, feeling an insurmountable amount of affection and it scared her. Her heart beat madly in her chest and instead of the railing, her hand moved to grip Fate's blazer, pressing forward against the other girl and brushing her lips so lightly she hardly felt it at all.

But she did, and _something pierced through her_ like a bullet, making her let out a soft whimper in the back of her throat.

And when she opened her eyes, Fate's expression was horrified and she wondered how she could be, because there was no way that she was the only one who felt that. There was no way- it wasn't possible that Fate had not felt it, that she had not felt the world shift to revolve around her too. It was impossible that she didn't feel that permanent rift in the universe.

"Nanoha!"

So why did Fate sound alarmed? Why did she seem to be getting farther away?

Then she noticed.

She noticed she was falling, feet having slipped off the edge and Fate leaned forward, fingers lightly grazing hers as she tried to stop her precipitous descent. And the world around them snapped back to normalcy. The wind came back with a vengeance. She was hit and knocked to the side and she lost sight of Fate, clouds wrapping around her lithe form and the world was spinning, the sun rising, falling, setting, the moon a clear, sharp contrast against the sky, and the school wasn't there anymore and instead she was falling off a cliff face, lights blinding her and her eyes burning as they shone.

"Testarossa-san!"

She couldn't see her anymore.

And a growing sense of horror paralyzed every other emotion.

"Testarossa-san!"

And suddenly, the blonde was there, head hanging forward limply as her arms were held back by an invisible force. Blood matted her hair and stained her clothing.

And that was when she hit the floor.

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She jerked awake as pain shot throughout her left side.

A startled yelp slipped from her mouth and her eyes shot open. She found herself on the floor. Her teacher smirked at her while most of the class snickered. She flushed and sat up, wincing as the side of her head throbbed.

"Nice of you to join the land of the living, Takamachi-san." Gil Graham grinned, "The class is over now and you're late for lunch."

She blinked.

"What?" She began, confused; her voice was garbled, much to her embarrassment. "But we were just watching a movie, and it was first period…"

"You slept through the first four periods, senpai." A young girl who looked to be about fourteen explained.

The girl sitting beside her looked to be a little older, and had hair that was colored the nicest shade of orange. She nudged the other sharply.

"Be quiet, Subaru." She hissed.

The blue haired girl grinned. "It's alright, Tea. That's Takamachi-san, Hayate's friend."

Nanoha blushed furiously and sat up, gathering her books. So she'd already gained a reputation for being a complete spaz.

A thought suddenly passed through her mind. She narrowed her eyebrows.

"You didn't wake me up on purpose!" She accused, scowling as her teacher chortled at her anger.

He smiled at her happily. "It's your responsibility."

She grimaced and muttered a half hearted apology before rushing out of the classroom. She ditched her books beside the eleventh grade lockers and began walking towards the cafeteria.

She faltered when she was around halfway there.

"…I wonder if…" She trailed off, and clenched her hands.

Determinedly, she turned on her heel and headed to the lobby, making sure to keep quiet as she passed by younger classes. She slipped past the office without notice and pushed open the doors, stepping out into the December chill.

_Blood matted her hair and stained her clothing._

She felt nauseous as she stumbled through the trees in order to find herself at the lakefront, alone and cold in more ways than one.

She was feeling rather dizzy, and it might've had something to do with the fact that she had a C average in her Pre-Calculus class, but mostly it had to do with the unknowing center of her universe.

And the fact that she hadn't seen her for three days.

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"Nanoha-chan! Nanoha-chan! Pay attention to me! Nanoha-chan!"

"What?" She snapped irately, looking up to glare at Hayate.

The cheerful girl was not deterred in the slightest.

"Tomorrow's Saturday!" She proceeded to bounce on the bed.

Nanoha's eyebrow twitched.

"And your point is?"

"It's the weekend!"

She looked back at her Calculus book.

"That's great, Hayate-chan…Now why don't you go tell that to Yuuno-kun, or someone else…?"

The book was yanked from her hands.

"Hey!"

The other girl's blue eyes invaded her line of vision. A cheeky grin spread across her face.

"Do you know what happens when we have weekends where we're free of work, Nanoha-chan?"

She sighed.

"Will you give me my book back if I agree to listen to you?" It was unceremoniously dropped onto her lap. "Okay…no, I don't know."

"We're gonna go sing karaoke tomorrow."

"Oh." She was surprised. "Karaoke?"

"Yeah, we're cool like that. It's a lot of fun. You should come with us."

"Uhm…" She trailed off.

She'd never really been to a karaoke bar, though she'd heard from her friends that it was a lot of fun. However, she should try to study for her Pre-Calc final. But…it would take her mind off…

"Yeah." She said softly. "Yeah, I'll go."

"Great!" Hayate bounced off her bed and headed right for the door. "I'll go tell the others."

The door slammed shut. Nanoha sighed and pushed away her book. She closed her eyes and let herself slump back onto the pillow, the Fate in her mind's eye incomparable to the original.

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The music pounded and pulsed like a living thing. Voices seemed to catch mid-song, and Nanoha had to laugh at the fact that she was quite possibly going to sound as bad, and maybe worse.

So when they sat down at a table, she was really quite relieved when Hayate told her that she didn't have to participate if she didn't want to.

"I'm just happy you're here with us." She said, grinning, and the slate blue eyed girl had to smile back.

Across the table, Yuuno tried to unsuccessfully nod his head to the beat.

"My God, Yuuno-kun…" Shamal said from her spot beside Signum, "How do you even play an instrument?"

"I'm not sure." He admitted, and smiled sheepishly.

"Oh, come on…" Nanoha interjected, feeling a little sorry for him, "You're not that bad."

Which was a complete lie. But it was a small one, right? Right. It was for the greater good.

"R-really?" He stuttered, and blushed, and for some reason, Nanoha suddenly found herself wishing she hadn't said anything at all. "I'm not that bad?"

She nodded awkwardly; she was a little uncomfortable with the way he was watching her. He seemed really rather happy, and she was happy that he was happy, but…

"No, you're not."

He grinned at her, his cheeks still red. "Thanks."

Beside him, Chrono smirked.

"It's about time someone pet his self esteem."

He then yelped as Vita kicked him from under the table.

"You don't have to be so mean to him all the time." She stated, huffing and looking away.

The older boy sputtered, "But he's ferret boy!"

Nanoha smiled, amused at their banter. She shook her head and scanned the room, observing the happy faces, the smiles. Blondes tended to stick out, although none of them had that amazing shade of- not thinking about it, not thinking about her, not thinking about Fate- ah, screw it. She was thinking about her.

She scowled subconsciously and rubbed her eyes, trying to get the image out of her head.

"Nanoha-chan?"

And she was expecting someone to call her name, but she didn't expect_ that _voice. She blinked and stared up at her blonde best friend, the same blonde who used to hold her hand when they were little, the same blonde whose hand was now holding her _other_ best friend's hand.

"Arisa-chan? Suzuka-chan?" She asked in disbelief. Then the emotion was replaced by excitement. "What are you doing here?!"

She jumped up from her seat, grinning widely when Suzuka glomped her and Arisa bopped her on the head.

"You don't have to act so childishly just because we're here." The blonde scolded.

However, the frown soon faded and became the same childish glee Nanoha was sure her own face was projecting.

"How are you?" Suzuka asked her, and glanced pointedly at her companions, who were, by now, standing up to introduce themselves.

"I'm Yagami Hayate." The brown haired sports enthusiast greeted happily, "And it's very nice to finally meet you."

"Yuuno Scrya." The blonde boy bowed and smiled warmly.

Nanoha grinned and pointed at the rest of them, one by one, respectively, "And they're Signum-san, Chrono-kun, Shamal-san, and Vita-chan."

"It's nice to meet you." They chimed in unison, and Vita glared at Chrono when he dared to put his arm around her shoulder.

"Likewise." Suzuka said, and nudged Arisa until she said the same.

"Would you like to join us at our table?" Signum offered gently.

Her best friends grinned and nodded.

"We'd love to."

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"So you guys are together?"

It was later on in the evening and Nanoha was beginning to feel just the tiniest hints of fatigue. However, the news served as well as a cup of pure caffeine.

Suzuka, much to her surprise, was the one who grinned, while Arisa was the one who blushed, a light pink color that made Nanoha smile. It was rather fun to watch, although a little alarming, considering the fact that this was the girl who had previously bopped her violently on the head. Funny. It made her wonder who wore the pants in the relationship.

She snickered privately. Arisa shot her a suspicious look.

"What?" She demanded, crossing her arms over her chest in an indignation fashion. "If you have something to say, then say it."

But before she could, Chrono beat her to it, a smirk playing upon his handsome features.

"Who tops?"

Arisa flushed furiously while the rest of the table –Suzuka included– erupted into laughter.

"Well," Suzuka began, trying to stop the giggles from continuing, "If you must know, I-"

The blonde quickly yanked the girl in for a kiss in order to stop her from revealing anything about their…relationship. And Nanoha watched them, perhaps paying a little _too much_ attention. But instead of her friends, she saw herself, felt her hands buried in blonde tresses, found herself reveling in the color of burgundy.

"It's such a nice color…" She murmured softly.

And then suddenly froze.

A glimmer of blonde had caught her eye. She turned reflexively, even though in her heart she already knew it wouldn't be who she thought it was.

But it _was_.

She was pale and looking absolutely gorgeous. And she was leaving.

She shot out of her chair, nearly knocking it over with her enthusiasm. Because it was Fate. It was _Fate_. The same girl she hadn't seen in days. The same girl whose absence she had noticed since day one.

And school hadn't been the same without her.

She ignored her friends' questions and dashed past tables on her way to the exit. She dodged a drunken couple, nearly tripping over her own feet as she gripped the doorknob, pulled the door open, and stepped outside.

Swallowing dryly, she looked from side to side, trying to catch another glimpse. She moved forward, a desperate sensation beginning to overwhelm her.

"Fate-chan…" She muttered under her breath, and it felt harder to breathe. "Where are you?"

A hand touched her shoulder, and she spun around.

"Where's who?"

But it wasn't who she wanted.

She didn't have time to scream before the man hit her hard across the face and dragged her to a nearby alleyway.

"Nanoha-chan!" Hayate's voice.

Calling her.

She struggled faintly against the man's hold, trying to get a good grip on his hands, but he slammed her against the wall, his hand over her mouth. She tried to bite it, but he struck her again, and this time there was a faint ringing in her ears.

"Nanoha?" He asked her, and his voice sounded too loud, "Is that your name?"

She glared at him defiantly and he grinned.

"Pretty name for a pretty girl."

Something warm trickled down her nose.

"Yes." A voice agreed.

And she could recognize it anywhere.

"A pretty girl that you won't get to touch."

The man's weight was abruptly taken off her. She slid to the floor, her legs weak because everything was spinning and the ringing in her ears was louder, more insistent. She watched dazedly as the blonde blur kneed the man in the stomach, as pale hands gripped hair and pulled back so he was standing. He tried to swing a fist at her but she ducked easily, and in a movement Nanoha could hardly discern, the girl let herself fall back on her left hand and hooked her foot around his ankle. She tugged.

He fell flat on his back, the wind knocked out of him. Fate's foot was immediately against his face, pressing him harshly against the cold floor.

"Nanoha-chan!" Arisa and Suzuka.

"Go back to your friends."

Nanoha blinked slowly, trying to process what the girl had said.

"What…?" Her voice was wrong.

"They're calling you. Go."

"But…but…Testarossa-san…" She began to protest, and for some reason, tears were beginning to well up in her eyes because she couldn't believe what had just happened and she couldn't believe that Fate was telling her to leave when she'd been missing for _days_ and…

And the other girl froze.

"Would you just leave?" The velvety voice snapped. "I don't have time for this right now."

The brown haired girl choked back a sob and scrambled clumsily to her feet. The whole left side of her face hurt and her head pounded, and as soon as she emerged from the darkness of the alleyway and into the glare of the streetlights, her eyes began to burn. She spotted Hayate, who blinked in confusion for a moment before breaking out into a run. She was furious.

"Who did this to you?" She demanded, and Nanoha felt like a little girl again.

"Ice...! We need ice or something!"

"We should take her to the hospital!"

Spinning. So dizzy. So disillusioned.

_Fate-chan…_

And at the moment, nothing hurt more than being rejected.

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When she woke up, she was at the infirmary.

Her nose wasn't broken and had stopped bleeding, but her face was swollen and her left eye was a frightening shade of violet. Even Yuuno hadn't managed to refrain from wincing.

"Please tell me people aren't staring."

She tried to sink as low in her seat as possible. Beside her, Hayate smiled bemusedly, and said,

"They're not staring at you."

Nanoha sighed mournfully.

"Don't lie to me."

"Well, you asked for it."

Signum chuckled and leaned forward on the palms of her hands.

"It's really not that bad, Takamachi-san. Besides, everyone knows what happened wasn't your fault."

And that…didn't really make her feel better.

"I can't take this anymore..." She said tiredly, and stood from her chair. "I'm going to go for a walk."

Yuuno tentatively stood with her.

"Do you want me to go with you…?"

"I…" She paused. "I think…I want to go by myself this time. But thanks, Yuuno-kun."

He nodded gently and sat back down. The others watched her carefully, and to reassure them, she smiled.

"I just need fresh air." She explained.

All eyes in the cafeteria followed her as she walked toward the exit. She pushed past the doors, heading down the now familiar path to the lobby, and subsequently, to the courtyard outside. She bypassed the paths leading toward the gym and the dorms and just walked, lost in thought.

Lost in the ache that had begun to well up inside her. She missed the crooked smiles and the kind words.

She hadn't seen Fate Testarossa since that night. In fact, much to her amazement, she'd been glad to see the girl wasn't in class that Monday, or the day after that. It hurt too much to think about.

She wasn't even sure why she had taken the girl's words so hard. She was just aware that they hurt, and that Fate apparently needed space. And time.

She smiled ironically, wrapping her arms around herself.

"Time…" She muttered.

"Time for what?"

The voice made her scowl reflexively.

"Stay away from me, Jail. I'm not in the mood."

The boy grinned maliciously before moving to stand right in front of her. His hand reached out to touch her face but she moved back just in time.

"What happened, Takamachi? Did your boyfriend beat you up?"

She glared at him.

"It's none of your business. And anyway, what do you care?"

"I don't." He shrugged, eyes laughing. "I was just thinking that I needed to thank the guy for doing what I haven't been able to."

Against her better judgment, her eyes burned. She fought against the urge to cry. As she opened her mouth to reply, another voice interrupted their spat.

"You've always been an ass, Jail. I don't know what she ever saw in you."

Her heart pounded. She whirled around, and this time, she could see the girl clearly. Beautiful eyes. Golden hair. Except…that she wasn't wearing the school uniform, like she should have been, would have been any other day.

Behind her, she felt Jail stiffen.

"You're back…" He murmured softly, and it confused her.

He was never soft with Fate. Never.

And yet…and yet…that wasn't the only odd thing there. Because Fate's eyes were lighter, her hair a shade darker, and her posture was prouder, more arrogant, as though she was now fully aware of the effect that her beauty had on other people. She looked more _confident_.

"Hello again, little girl." The different Fate said, eyes glinting with amusement.

Her voice was still beautiful, still irresistible. But it held a note of permanent laughter that was never in Fate's normal voice.

"…What?" She was confused, and her confusion was apparent in her voice. "But…wait…"

The girl strode towards her and cupped her chin. A playful, flirtatious little grin played upon her face. She was breathtakingly beautiful. But in a different way. A different way.

She was different.

This wasn't…this wasn't Fate.

"Who are you?" She asked, almost accusingly, and wrenched herself from the girl's grasp, nearly backing into Jail in the process.

The girl smiled in amusement and opened her voice to reply. But there was a gasp that stopped her from speaking.

It was Hayate, with a look of terrible sadness and _guilt_, and there were suddenly even more questions that Nanoha wanted answered.

"Alicia…"

And Hayate's hands were clenched tightly into fists.

"Alicia…?" Nanoha whispered, and looked back at the girl.

Fate's replica smiled, almost cruelly.

"Hello, Hayate-chan." It was mocking, the way her voice was so cheerful when her eyes were so sad and full of the gaze of the betrayed, "Have you seen my sister?"

With the world spinning, Nanoha took a step back. She was finally starting to realize how very little she knew about Fate Testarossa.

"No…" Hayate replied, and it sounded very much like a whimper.

"Well," Alicia said, so happily it was painful to hear, "I need to tell her something that will quite possibly make her happy."

A dreadful sensation rose up to her throat. She wanted to see Fate. She _needed_ to.

And without skipping a beat, Alicia continued. "Our mother's finally dead."

"You sound as though you hate her."

Her heart jumped up to her throat. Because there, walking through the trees and heading towards them, was Fate.

And this time, there was no mistaking her.

"How are you, darling sister?"

There was sarcasm in Alicia's voice. Fate smiled brokenly.

"Still not forgiven."

Her sister's smile turned into a snarl.

"As you will remain forever."

And all the while, Nanoha watched as Hayate's eyes filled with tears.

"_I miss your smile, I miss your smile…I need you now, I need you now…"_

**A/N: **Alright, first thing first. Spelling mistakes. If you find any, AND grammar mistakes, let me know and they shall be fixed immediately. It's unbeta-ed.

Okay, and second. Wow. Yeah. I know. There are tears in my eyes. I _finally_ updated this. Yeah, well. I told you I would, didn't I? And I will again. Heh. Right. Hope you enjoyed the bit of...movement...in the storyline. Someone prompted me to move it along. So I did. Even if I _was_ having fun with the NanoFate interactions in the previous chapters.


	6. Ch 5: Iris

**Melody of a Broken Memory**

**Chapter 5: **Iris

"_And I don't want the world to see me…'cause I don't think that they'd understand…"_

It was hard to breathe. Ever since earlier that day, it had been hard to breathe.

She surveyed the students as they walked back to the dorms, leaning on the rooftop's rail. The metal was cold underneath her fingertips, but not bitingly so. It was a sharp contrast to her feverish skin, to her burning mouth, to the whirlwind of fire blowing inside her.

"_Stop it."_

_Fate's reflection turned to face the girl whose eyes were guilty. She smiled bitterly, eyes so terribly wounded, and for a second, Nanoha could have sworn she was looking at Fate instead. But that was impossible, because Fate wouldn't say the things the girl before her was saying._

"_Stop what, Hayate-chan?" Alicia spoke through clenched teeth and everyone present could hear the rawness in her voice. "What you began? This is the result of _your_ actions! Don't you dare tell me what to do!"_

"_No, Alicia." There was so much despair, so much anger in Fate's voice. She could hardly recognize her. "Everything that happened was my fault." And then her voice was a whisper. "Everything."_

_Alicia breathed out harshly and straightened her posture. It made the Nanoha feel very small._

"_Yes, well," She said flippantly, airily, regaining an air of detachment, "It's easier to hate Hayate than it is to hate you." The brown haired girl let out a strangled sob at which Fate flinched and Alicia smiled, "I could never _really_ hate you, Fate-chan."_

_The girl smiled again and pressed the palm of her hand against her cheek, breathing deeply. The sight made Nanoha sick to her stomach._

"_After all, you're a part of me, and I'm a part of you." The girl's thumb pressed against her twin's cheek until her nail was digging sharply into pale skin. At Fate's wince, Alicia sneered. "Even though I'm entirely disgusted by you, at times."_

"_Stop it now!"_

_And when everyone turned to look at her, Nanoha was really quite surprised to find the words had come from her. Her nails were digging into the palms of her hands, and she was shaking. _

"_Please, Testarossa-san..." She whispered, focusing on her shoes. "I know…I understand it's not my place to say anything…it's not my place to get involved…but please…just stop."_

_She glanced at the twins quickly, and looked away. And while Alicia's expression was entirely surprised, Fate's was…a blank slate. _

_Which was why Nanoha was stunned to hear her speak._

"_Nanoha…" _

_And it was her, it had to be her, because there was no one else who said her name that way. Soft hands cupped her chin and lifted her head so she was forced to look her in the eyes. At the essence Fate. At the beautiful girl that had ensnared her since day one. _

"_Nanoha…"_

_And when had Fate gotten so close to her, anyway? She couldn't breathe. Even then, during such a serious moment, she couldn't breathe. And her heart beat hyperactively in her chest, as thought it had just received an injection of pure sugar._

"_Who did this to you?"_

_The blonde's thumb brushed lightly against her left cheek. _

"_I…" She began, and faltered. She tried again, this time actually managing to maintain her voice somewhat steady. "I was at a karaoke bar…and I went outside because-…"_

_But she couldn't finish her sentence. _

"_Because she saw me, and thought I was you."_

_They both turned to Alicia. The girl's burgundy eyes glinted with hints of malformed amusement. _

"_So this little girl is your new interest, Fate-chan?" She asked, with laughter in her voice, "Well, you've always had a thing for pretty girls with blue eyes."_

_Fate's hand shook on her cheek. Then it dropped down to her side. Nanoha felt her throat tighten at the sight of dead eyes. Alicia hummed and took a few steps forward until she was standing beside her sister, at which point the latter had moved to face elsewhere. Anywhere but there. _

_But before she could do anything, Jail, whose presence Nanoha had entirely forgotten, stepped forward._

"_Stop it, Alicia." He said softly, "Let it be."_

_The girl glanced at him contemptuously. "Why should I?"_

"_Because you're acting exactly like your mother."_

_Alicia flinched and took a step back, and suddenly, by the sorely betrayed look in her eyes, Nanoha found traces of vulnerability. Of panic. Of pain. Before any of them could blink, Hayate had crossed the distance between them and shoved Jail back. And she was furious._

"_How could you say that to her?! To either of them?!"_

_But she couldn't take it anymore. She couldn't take the spinning of her head, anymore. She took a step back, trembling and nauseous, and she turned on her heel and began to drag herself away._

"_Nanoha!" Fate and Hayate. _

_Both voices desperate._

_But it was Fate who persisted when she didn't stop. It was Fate who ran after her._

"_Nanoha...!"_

_The girl had darted in front of her, blocking her way. And she was so very beautiful with her red eyes and mussed up hair. She was suddenly brought back to the first time she had seen her, the sun setting, her violin poised to perfection._

_But she seemed so afraid, this time. So scared._

"…_I'm sorry."_

_She wasn't sure what Fate was apologizing for. But at that moment, in which her head was whirling with an overload of information, she didn't want to know. Her eyes prickled with tears, and she shook her head and gave Fate a wobbly smile. _

_And then she left._

_For the first time, it was _she_ who had left Fate behind._

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"Nanoha-chan…"

Takamachi Nanoha was staring at the wall unblinkingly. Her back was pressed flat against the tiles of the bathroom. And she was with her arms crossed over her chest, staring at the wall.

"Please…answer me..."

She didn't want to. She just wanted Hayate to leave her alone. Because she needed time to figure out what the burning in her chest meant. She needed time to figure out why she was so angry with the brown haired girl. She needed time to figure out why she was so upset about everything that had happened.

Because it honestly didn't involve her. It involved Fate, Alicia, and Hayate. And though a part of her dreaded what the secret might be, she needed to know. But she wasn't sure why.

"I'm sorry, Nanoha-chan…I'm sorry…"

"Why?"

Her voice was a shadow of itself.

"Fate…" She paused at the name, tendrils of anxious pain shooting throughout her body as she said it, "Testarossa-san said the same thing earlier. Why are you sorry? I have nothing to do with it. So why does it matter so much?"

_Why did everything hurt so much?_

"Nanoha-chan…"

Everything was spinning. Everything hurt. Everything was wrong because everything was beginning to piece together in her head even though she didn't want it to. Something happened between them. Something that made Alicia hate Fate and Hayate. Which meant that Fate and Hayate did something to hurt Alicia. Something to betray her trust.

Something that had wounded her deeply.

She didn't want to think about it.

"What am I thinking, Hayate-chan? Where's my mind right now?"

On the other side of the door, Hayate stiffened.

"I…" She trailed off, uncertain. "I don't know, Nanoha…"

The slate blue eyed girl wrapped her arms around herself against the incoming tide of shivers. She let herself slide unto the floor and pressed her cheek to the cool tiles.

"I don't know, either."

This was all she managed to say before she had to scramble up to the toilet and throw up.

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When she finally came out of the bathroom, it was nearing one in the morning.

Hayate was still sitting outside, knees drawn up to her chest, face pressed against her arms. She looked up with puffy eyes as Nanoha sat down across from her. There was fear in her eyes, and anguish.

"What went on between you three…?" The slate blue eyed girl asked tiredly, resting her head in her hands.

Yagami Hayate inhaled sharply and looked away.

"You're not going to like what you hear…" Her voice was shaking.

Nanoha glanced up at her warily and wrapped her arms around herself again. She took a deep breath and concentrated on trying to breathe normally. She was failing miserably.

"It doesn't matter, Hayate-chan…" A lie. A complete lie. Because everything depended on what she would hear. She didn't want to hear it. She didn't want to. But she had to or else she was going to end up driving herself crazy with theories, with her own suspicions, because whatever had happened had involved Fate and whatever happened to Fate was now linked to her because she had fallen-

She didn't want to think about it.

"It has nothing to do with me, Hayate-chan…It has nothing to do with me, but it has everything to do with me." She choked on her words, fumbling desperately, tears stinging at her eyes. "Because it has to do with Testarossa-san. And I don't want to know, because I'm already aware that it's bound to be distressing and unpleasant…because Testarossa-san…Testarossa-san is so _sad_, Hayate-chan…she's so sad and seeing her like that…it kills me on the inside…so please, Hayate-chan…tell me why she's like this…"

For a few seconds, all Nanoha could hear was their breathing. All she could feel was an anxious pressure in her heart that refused to ease, no matter the things she thought to try and calm it.

And then the sound of Hayate's voice, strangely dead, filled the room.

"I first came here during my first year in junior high. Almost all of our friends were already here by that time, except for Yuuno-kun, Arf-san, and Vita…" She faltered, before continuing, "I met Alicia Testarossa while trying out the clubs…She was beautiful, and popular, and even then she could somehow find a way to seduce a rock if she had to."

Nanoha looked at Hayate to find her smiling, albeit a little bitterly. Her insides clenched and she tried to calm the nervous, disagreeable fluttering in her stomach.

"We started talking, but then I eventually had to head back to my dorm and that was it for that day. On the following Monday, I thought I saw her in the halls and called out her name, but it was actually her equally infamous twin, Fate Testarossa." At this, Hayate's eyes darkened, a little. Nanoha squeezed her own shut for a few seconds to ignore the fear that had risen up to her throat, and made it tight, and utterly hard to breathe. "And I had originally been expecting something else, something entirely…different. Fate…took me by surprise."

It was a quiet admission filled with the strangest emotion. An emotion Nanoha couldn't place, or even begin to understand. Something she didn't think she _wanted_ to understand.

"She wasn't at all like Alicia. She wasn't flirtatious, or outspoken. She was shy and very kind, and she had sad, quiet eyes…" She trailed off, for a moment, a second in which Nanoha's heart stopped. "At any rate…The three of us became fast friends, and eventually, we were known as the supposedly inseparable trio. But then things began to change a year and a half ago…Some things came to light, that I can't really talk about, because they're not my secrets to tell…But…" Hayate hesitated briefly. "But I can say that they weren't really pleasant to listen to."

Nanoha nodded, a small movement that was barely visible. But somehow, the other girl managed to catch it.

"After that…after that a lot of things changed. Alicia…and I…" She swallowed, "We started dating."

A lead block officially settled in her stomach.

"We started dating, because I liked her, and she liked me, and we were happy, for a while. Until Fate started to avoid us."

She didn't want to hear anymore.

"I managed to…I managed to corner her, and ask her what was wrong, and then-"

She didn't want to know.

"And then- I found o-out that she- that she- Nanoha-chan?"

She couldn't breathe.

She scrambled to her feet and stumbled towards the door, because it was hot inside that room, everything was moving, inside that room, and she didn't want to be there, anymore. She needed to leave. She needed fresh air. She couldn't breathe.

She couldn't _breathe._

"Nanoha-chan…! Please…! Please don't leave me…!"

She blocked out Hayate's sobs, blocked out everything, blocked out _Fate_ (_it hurt so badly)_, and wrenched open the door. And then she walked silently, marched noiselessly until she reached the exit. And she stepped through it, to be hit by a wave of cold air.

Her face was wet, somehow.

She ignored it and kept walking.

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The clock continued to tick, despite her wishes for it to remain frozen.

It was four thirty in the morning, and even though she needed sleep desperately, it wouldn't come to her. She was too lost in her own thoughts, too lost in the gaping hole in her chest, too lost in the guilt that had consumed her.

"_How could you do this to me, Fate…?"_

How could she, indeed?

_What a terrible person._

She felt herself tremble at the tide of emotions she felt when looking at her reflection, sleeping soundly on the bed beside her own. Nothing would ever be the same. Nothing would ever be the same, and it was her fault. The thought burned her insides to ashes.

If only she hadn't been so stupid.

If only she hadn't acted upon her feelings.

If only she hadn't been so selfish.

If only she had never been-

An agitated rapping echoed throughout the room, startling her. She lifted her head and listened. Someone was definitely tapping on the door.

She slid out from underneath the covers of her bed and walked unsteadily towards it, wondering. She was always wondering.

She opened it. It was not whom she was expecting. And who _had_ _she _been expecting, anyway?

"Hayate…" She murmured softly, feeling somehow on the edge.

Because the girl hadn't talked to her in ages, not really, and she hadn't been anywhere near her room since that night. So why was she there now, in the middle of the night, looking as though she had just killed someone?

"I need you to find Nanoha."

And at the sound of the girl's name –_that beautiful girl, that wonderful girl, that_ – her heart sank low in her chest and she gripped the doorknob so tightly her knuckles turned white.

"What happened?"

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She wasn't sure when she had stopped walking.

After the first hour, or after the second. But she had stopped. She had simply ceased and slid down to the floor. She had watched the sky, the only comforting thing available. And even then, the sky had done nothing. The sky, with its beautiful half moon. The sky, the dark thing above her head that reminded her so much of home. Even that had lost its comfort.

Because she could _see_ it.

A younger Fate, pining after the girl her sister had. A younger Fate, even then always getting the raw end of the deal. A younger Fate, in love…infatuated…with Hayate.

And somehow, the thought was unbearable to her. She couldn't stand it. She couldn't stand to think about what had happened between the two of them to make Alicia so upset.

It hurt to imagine it.

But why? Why was it that it hurt? Why did it matter to her if Fate had once upon a time been infatuated with Yagami Hayate?

Why was it that she couldn't stand to picture Fate with anyone except-?

"Nanoha…" A breathless whisper, and suddenly, there was warmth strewn against her side.

Arms wrapped around her shoulders, warm breath against her neck. Blonde hair. And even though there was pain, her body reacted to the touch.

_Fate…_

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The minute she had seen the other girl, her legs had given away and she had nearly shouted with relief. But she had kept silent except for a breathy utterance of her name, and a sigh. And  
_the beautiful girl, wonderful girl, the enigma  
_Nanoha had automatically stiffened.

Automatically. She had tensed, and her breathing had quickened.

Somewhere in the back of her mind, Fate wondered why that bothered her so much. But then she cast it aside. And she focused.

She withdrew from the partial embrace she had given the girl and arranged herself neatly beside her. She wondered if she looked half as tired, as ragged, as she felt.

_Always wondering…_

"I owe you…an explanation." She murmured quietly, trying very hard not to disturb the terribly fragile peace that had settled over the both of them.

It shattered.

"You don't owe me anything, Testarossa-san." The girl said, with the strangest of smiles on her face. "Really."

The expression was wrong. Fake. It made her squeamish.

_She had broken someone all over again._

"I need to tell you." The admission was out of her mouth before she could stop it.

And it was so unfair. Terribly unfair. Because a part of her already knew that if she said that, Nanoha wouldn't be able to say no.

"_Are you messing things up again, Fate-chan?"_

"…_Breaking things?"_

Like the strings on her violin, one by one, one by one…

_Snap._

No. She didn't want to do it. Not to Nanoha. Never to Nanoha.

"We slept together. And I regret it."

Nanoha's sharp intake of breath. The sight of her eyes.

The pain she felt was enough to leave her breathless.

"She felt so guilty about it that she told Alicia immediately the next day. That was the end of our friendship."

The end, so swift it had left no time for closure.

_She had lost her sister too._

"I'm going to go." Nanoha's voice was quivering as she attempted to stand.

But something possessed Fate, then. She nearly jumped at the girl, dragging her down again, and pressing her firmly against the ground. In the middle of the night. At the lakefront.

"_Are you breaking things again?"_

Slate blue eyes  
_beautiful things pools of water of sky  
_gazed up at her. Fear and sadness. And an emotion Fate could not identify. She was  
_gorgeous_  
an enigma.

"Please don't leave me." She said softly. _Pleaded._

"_You're so unfair, Fate-chan…"_

She was. She knew it. She manipulated.

"_You're so unfair…"_

"You're so unfair, Testarossa-san…" The girl beneath her said, voice breaking. "How can I say no when you look at me like that?"

Fate tried to smile. It cracked halfway.

_I need you here with me._

She needed Nanoha to stay.

And she was afraid  
_such a terrible fear_  
to ask herself why.

"_When everything's made to be broken…I just want you to know who I am…"_

**A/N: **I'm late. And I have the feeling that I'll be going to hell for this update. XD And for the angst contained within.


	7. Ch 6: Rejection

**Melody of a Broken Memory**

**Chapter 6: **Rejection

"_Oh, this time when I walk, I won't feel…I won't feel …"_

She was a beautiful girl.

She'd been told so over and over again since she was a child. And when she was young, she couldn't quite see it, couldn't quite _understand_ it, because she'd been innocent and naïve and all the things came with being a little girl. Even her mother  
_darling Precia who beat her over and over and over and Fate with her smiles crying being beaten again and again  
_had said so on various occasions, when she'd been in a good mood. She'd been raised that way, and it had sadly –_pathetically –_ become a part of her.

She'd grown up, and had become vain and flirtatious, and everyone had thought her irresistible.

She'd been  
_an insatiable monster  
_the girl with the good looks out to conquer whomever she wanted.

And that had been her. It had been a perfect description of her, until she'd fallen in love. And it had happened so slowly that it'd taken her ages to figure it out.

_And Alicia Testarossa was beautiful, but she'd never been dense._

For the first time in her life, she'd been nervous around another person. She'd always been confident  
_a broken sort of thing that defined her  
_but around Hayate, she'd been reduced to what she'd never been.

A trembling, fidgety little girl with an incredible fear of rejection, who hid behind a cocky mask because it was all she'd ever learned from her mother.

_Alicia Testarossa was a beautiful girl that was also very much like her mother. More so than her sister._

And it killed her, because once she'd gotten what she truly wanted, once she'd realized that her feelings were entirely requited-

Once she'd finally been _truly_ happy-

She'd lost everything to  
_her own reflection_  
Fate.

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When Takamachi Nanoha finally woke up, it felt as though she'd never left for the Academy.

It was as if she was still at home, being woken up by her mother's calls from the kitchen. As though her father had left to work at the bakery, and her brother and sister were still helping in the kitchen. As though she'd never left Arisa and Suzuka behind.

But she had.

She opened her eyes to the sound of water lapping against a solid surface. The violent glare of the sun met her gaze and she squinted, struggling to get past the pounding in her head that briefly made her wonder if she'd gotten drunk the previous night.

But she hadn't, and that much was rapidly becoming obvious.

There was warmth against her that she'd never really felt before. The same warmth she'd become aware of so many times in the past months.

Something moved in her stomach, in the entirely disconcerting way of a worm that doesn't know when to die.

She hated it –_which was a complete lie, because if anything, she lo_ – and was determined to make it die. She would squeeze the life out of it if it was the last thing she'd ever get the chance to do.

With the smallest and most unconvincing of scowls on her face, she shifted, trying to get the weight off her.

And promptly froze, because a hand was planted firmly on the skin of her stomach and it felt- _terrible. _She ignored the flush that was rising rapidly, ignored the little fluttering inside her, ignored everything that had to do with the insufferable warmth lying beside her.

She stiffly moved away and looked elsewhere, anywhere but at that face. And then the worst possible thing happened.

She woke Fate up.

And with one glance at those eyes, her chest exploded, pain filtering through every nerve she had in her body with an intensity that terrified her. And she felt strangely betrayed.

"_I slept with her."_

She felt strangely betrayed.

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When Alicia Testarossa woke up and found Yagami Hayate on her sister's bed, she felt strangely betrayed.

Not like she had felt almost a year ago, but she still felt betrayed. Had they decided to rub their relationship in her face? She grinned, although grinning was the last thing she wanted to do.

"Hey there, Hayate-chan." She drawled, and sat up, extremely aware of the way her shirt barely managed to cover the skin of her thighs. "Waiting for Fate to return from her nightly rendezvous with Nanoha-chan?"

There were dark circles under the brown haired child's eyes, and a tiredness that made Alicia just that little bit more wary. For a moment, she was almost worried. And then everything came crashing back and her grin became that bizarre smirk that was a mix of resentment and lo-

And she still loved the girl. And the girl still loved her.  
_I'm gonna fucking shoot myself, one day, and it's going to be sad not seeing her face when I do.  
_Not that she was actually suicidal.

But the fact that they still had that thing going on made hurting Hayate all the sweeter.

_Sorry, baby, but even though I'm not over you, I'm over you._

It made more sense in her head, but whatever. The point was that she wouldn't go back to Hayate, no matter how much she- didn't want to, anyway.

"I'm sorry, Alicia."

The statement made her draw herself out of bed and saunter over to where the girl was sitting with a particular flounce to her step. The flounce that she knew would make those eyes darken with desire. With pain.

Her hand caressed the skin of Hayate's cheek, and she reveled in the warmth, for a second, before she leaned forward and captured already parted lips with her own. Her hand slid down to the bed and she pressed herself flush against the brunette, leaning farther down, pushing their hips together in a way that made Hayate gasp, that made her entire body tingle all over.

A breathy little moan escaped her throat, and for a second, she saw herself grinding down, saw herself pinning the other girl to the mattress. She felt the pure, searing _heat_ of skin against skin, felt the perfection of the body she had always imagined yet never had the chance to explore and-

_Fingers itching to touch places she'd never touched before._

But Fate had.

Fate had, and that's what made her tear away from her fantasy and focus on  
_delightful sounds_  
Hayate's whimpers against her.

She bit the other girl's lower lip, letting her hands grasps the others hips before grinding down roughly and with no room left for tenderness. For a second, a hand brushed against the underside of her breast and her resolve nearly crumbled.

"_I-I'm so sorry, Alicia! I didn't- I don't know why I did it! I'm sorry, I'm so sorry-"_

And then she had shoved the girl away, and sashayed her way to the bathroom. But before entering, she looked over her shoulder.

Hayate's lip was bleeding where she'd bitten it. She looked as though she would have liked to cry, but had no tears left. It made Alicia smile.

"_I'm sorry, Alicia."_

"Aren't we all?"

She walked inside the bathroom, stripped, and turned on the shower. She made it as hot as it allowed and proceeded to scrub her skin obsessively, until it had turned raw and she was convinced that no traces of Yagami Hayate remained on her.

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The expression on  
_the enigma's_  
Nanoha's face made her breath hitch in her throat.

_Disheveled hair that was very much like silk all around her head, beautiful blue eyes sparkling with something Fate couldn't identify- _She was really very pretty, but that wasn't why Fate was breathless.

That wasn't why-

Why did Nanoha look so terribly _wounded_?

"Nanoha…" She whispered, and her voice almost shook.

Almost broke. _Almost._

But the girl shot her a trembling smile, and there were tears in her eyes, again, and Fate didn't understand it. She didn't understand it at all.

_Why was she crying?_ She ignored the part of herself that was deeply disturbed by the fact that she  
_cared way too much was affected way too much to be normal to be her because it wasn't normal it wasn't like her she was changing and she didn't know how or why or-  
_wouldn't be able to stand it if she'd been the one to cause it.

_Breaking things…_

"I really need to go, now…" The brown haired girl mumbled, and clumsily stood up, and Fate got the feeling that if she let the girl go she wouldn't see her for a long time. "We're late for class."

And Fate Testarossa scrambled up with her in a desperate way she'd never realized was inside her.

"Come away with me." She said softly, and the thing that scared her most was the fact that she wanted nothing more than to take the other into her arms and never let go.

Nanoha froze in her movements, and her facial expression twisted, suddenly, and for some reason, she was sure she had said the wrong  
_right_  
thing.

She received a smile in response. A bitter smile that didn't belong on that face, a smile that she-

"I can't."

Her voice was husky.

Cracked.

It was almost a croak.

Slate blue eyes were dark with a pain Fate didn't understand.

"I'll see you after Christmas vacation, Testarossa-san."

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_That terrible, anguished gaze._

"_I'll see you after Christmas vacation, Testarossa-san."_

_Testarossa-san. _

_Fate-chan._

_Fate._

That voice. Accepting. Entirely resigned.

Eyes empty. The shadow she'd met months before.

A smile. _The_ smile.

_Shattered, battered, broken light…_

"Okay."

Just 'okay'.

At that exact moment, Takamachi Nanoha broke.

And this time, Fate Testarossa was the one who was left behind.

"_Oh, this time, when I talk, it's not real, it's not real, not real, not real, it's not real..."_

**A/N: **Yes, I am very aware that this is the shortest chapter I've _ever_ posted for Melody, but please trust me when I say that it was necessary.

It's the transition chapter. Next time, you'll find them in the second semester, and Alicia will be in class, this time, and the Testarossa twins will make it a point to torture their loved ones even more (though it's very inadvertent in Fate's case). Oh.

And there will be a...  
REVELATION.

...Right. XDX Sorry I took so long. _Will_ take so long. I'm _nearly _done with everything college related. Just a few more weeks....


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